


Spirit of the Wind

by LizardDisguise



Category: Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Medieval, F/M, Slow Burn, lowkey SatBK inspired
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-29
Updated: 2021-03-01
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:35:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 29
Words: 67,597
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27763096
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LizardDisguise/pseuds/LizardDisguise
Summary: Tales tell of a powerful spirit who resides within a mortal vessel, destined to be forever trapped in a reincarnation cycle. Such mortal would live to be a powerful warrior, a keeper of peace.The Wind Spirit was supposed to reincarnate into a resident of the Kingdom of Mobius twenty-five years ago. So why now, on the brink of war with the ever-growing Eggman Empire, has the spirit yet to show its face?
Relationships: Amy Rose/Sonic the Hedgehog
Comments: 83
Kudos: 130





	1. KINGDOM MOBIUS: Act 1

Red boots pounded against wet pavement. _Wonderful,_ Amy Rose thought sarcastically as she dashed through the gentle autumn rainfall, clutching a bag of miscellaneous knickknacks she’d purchased at the local market close to her chest. She cast a quick glance behind her, stumbling over a loose brick in the cobbled road in the process. _These attacks just keep getting worse and worse!_ Making a sharp left, she made her way up the steep hill that led to the castle that loomed in the distance. Or, she would have, if the road had not been blocked by the enemy. Skidding to a halt, she glanced behind her at the machine she’d been running from, closing in on her. Amy took a moment to gently set her bag on the ground. Slung across her back was a collapsible red warhammer, which she quickly drew into her hands and extended it into its full glory. She grinned, and the machines aimed loaded crossbows at her, ready to fire.

“You’re going to regret this,” she mused aloud, though these strange metal creatures could not understand her words. “I haven’t been offered the pleasure of a good fight in quite some time.”

A crossbow fired. Amy’s ears flicked in the direction of the noise, and swiftly she dodged out of the way, lifting her hammer to strike—

When, suddenly, a grappling hook connected with a nearby building and down swung a bespectacled red wolf, adorned in shimmering steel armor with the Mobian royal crest. Amy did nothing to stifle the groan and roll of her eyes.

“You should not be out on your own, Your Highness,” The wolf stated, making swift work of the machines. Before Amy could land even a single hit, her opponents were reduced to piles of metal by the hands of the soldier’s blade. The soldier turned to her and bowed respectfully, and in response, Amy simply turned her back to him, crossing her arms.

“Gadget,” she said bitterly. “I had it under control.”

“You were in danger,” Gadget replied, his voice timid.

“I was _not_ in danger. And YOU,” Amy said, whirling around and pointing a finger directly into Gadget’s chestplate with a glare. “I ordered YOU to remain at the castle.”

“Please, Your Highness, you know I cannot undermine the King’s orders…”

Amy huffed, a soft puff of steam visible in the cool evening air, then turned on her heels and marched towards the castle without another word. Gadget trailed silently behind her, and Amy prayed to the divines that he kept his distance, lest he wanted a hammer to his skull. She was quite sick of being followed around.

It wasn’t until she reached the castle that she realized she had forgotten her bag of trinkets out in the road. Not that they really mattered, though; going to the market was nothing more than an excuse to get out of the castle. It was a place to get fresh air, blow off some of her father’s money, and, for the most part, relax… Except for when the commoners stared too much, or when Robotnik decided to once again launch an assault on the Kingdom of Mobius. 

The guards at the front of the castle grounds graciously opened the gates without comment. This had grown routine for them, the Princess sneaking out only to return an hour or so later with whatever soldier the King had most recently appointed to be her guard. The Princess didn’t believe she needed a soldier to guard her, but the King insisted. And Amy hated being protected, so she did what she could to rebel: Take her frustration out, force every knight out of that position until there were no more knights left to offer the job. Was this immature behavior? Sure. But she didn’t care.

She made her way, not to her personal quarters like usual, but down to the castle blacksmith. She knocked gently on the doorframe, making her presence known as she entered. A small fox poked his head up from where he had been working at a worn-down wooden table on the other side of the workshop. Upon seeing the Princess standing before him, he yelped in surprise, dropping his wrench, then quickly stumbled out of his chair and bowed.

“You may rise,” Amy said with a smile, her friendly tone a drastic shift from her conversation just minutes prior. The teenaged fox, a genius far beyond his years, rose.

“How may I help you, Princess?” He asked with a flick of his twin tails.

“I just wanted to let you know that there’s a big pile of badnik parts at the base of the hill. Just before the intersection of Green Hill and Castle Street. I’d advise you wait until this raid dies down to go out, but I know you’ve been trying to study them.”

“Oh, thank you!” He replied excitedly. Amy smiled, then turned and walked out of the workshop. Gadget, she noted, was not anywhere to be seen. His absence was a relief. Though, he probably went to go report to her father.

Her father… 

She might as well go straight to him instead of trying to prolong the stern telling-off that was sure to come. She made her way through the castle halls, which were dressed with regal plush carpeting and lit lanterns every few paces to light the way with warm firelight. Upon reaching the throne room, just as she expected, she was greeted by the frowning face of the King.

“Why must you constantly do this, Amy?” He asked with an exasperated sigh. “I suppose you’ll be happy to hear that Gadget just put in his official resignation.”

“He was only here a week,” Amy mused. _New record._

“I will not allow you to carry on like this any further,” the King stated. “Since having knights assigned to your aide is clearly not working, tomorrow morning I will have _you_ pick out your next guard.”

Ah, the illusion of choice.

“Yes, father,” She said.

“You are dismissed.”

Amy slunk out of the throne room and made her way to her quarters. She dressed into her nightgown, and flopped down on her bed, pulling her silk sheets over her. It wasn’t long before her eyes drifted closed and she fell asleep.

Princess Amy Rose awoke just as the sun began peeking over the horizon by the sound of knocking at her door. Muttering under her breath, she swung her feet over the side of her bed and stood, quickly grabbing a set of her dayclothes and getting changed before opening the door.

“Amy,” the King said. “It is time for you to pick your knight.”

“This early in the morning?”

He didn’t gratify her with a response, instead opting to turn and lead her through the halls and out of the castle in stark silence. She could tell he was still angry with her, but then again, she supposed he was always angry with her over something.

The knights’ training grounds and barracks weren’t far from the castle proper, but were separate enough to make clear that the knights could not call the castle their home. Knights, her father had told her when she was young, were not much more than mere commoners, and should be treated as such. That was why they were kept so separate, in a barrack built of rotting wood. Amy always felt this treatment was a bit harsh.

Just ahead, past the barracks, was a large open field surrounded by tall wooden stakes. This was the training grounds, packed to the brim with shiny equipment and sliced-up training dummies. Since the soldiers must be trained to fight well enough to protect the Royal Family, the maintenance of the training ground was pristine. Compared to the barracks, this place was a palace.  
At the northern end of the facility, a wooden observation platform sat about ten feet above. The King and the Princess climbed the stairs and looked down over the wooden ledge at the unit of knights that were currently training.

“Soldiers,” The King addressed, to which every knight turned in unison and knelt, bowing their heads. “The Princess will observe your training and will choose a suitable knight to take on as her personal guard.”

The King gestured to a chair and Amy sat in it with a sigh. 

“At ease,” The King said to the soldiers, then turned to Amy. “You are not to leave until you pick a new knight, understood?”

“Yes, father…” Amy said halfheartedly.

“And, if you think you can just sit around and _not_ choose one, there will be consequences.”

It’s like he could read her mind. Amy would love nothing more than stick it to her father once more by wasting the whole day away, not choosing a knight. She sighed, she supposed she’d rather intimidate another knight for a little while than deal with whatever punishment her father had in mind for disobedience. Amy nodded silently, and her father left without another word.

Her eyes scanned the arena. It would be easy enough to just pick one at random, but, ugh, her father did say she had to _watch_ the guards train. Watch, implying that she didn’t just grab one and go. So she settled in. How long would be an acceptable amount of time? An hour? Two?

As time passed, she found herself actually starting to pay attention to the training instead of just daydreaming like she’d planned; What caught her attention was the fact that some of these knights were still rookies. She couldn’t pick one at random, she realized, because some of these young, impressionable knights could get seriously hurt because of her.

_Like Gadget,_ she realized. He hadn’t been a royal soldier for very long before being assigned to her. Perhaps six months or so, at the most. He was a capable knight, for sure, but still carried the anxiety that came with inexperience. She felt a bit guilty.

So, Amy focused on the ones that appeared more experienced, older. Ah, no, but one that’s too old and experienced surely wouldn’t put up with her stubbornness. It was a delicate balance that she didn’t realize she even cared about until that moment. Just when she was giving up hope of finding someone who might be worthwhile, her eyes settled over on a bench where one knight sat with his legs crossed, relaxed. He could not have been much older than her. He carried in his demeanor the decorum of a seasoned knight, and in his hand, a chili dog.

Eugh, commoner food. 

She realized something. That knight had not been on the training field all morning. What was he doing? Observing, perhaps? Her question was quickly answered when the Royal Guard Captain, an echidna with red quills not too unlike Gadget’s fur color, stomped over to the benched knight and yanked him up, dragging him out into the field, towards an unoccupied space towards the south end. The rough, sudden movement caused his grip on his chili dog to loosen, and Amy couldn’t help but laugh at the distraught face the hedgehog made when it hit the ground.

So the knight was just being lazy.

She poised herself to stand, about to go pick him out right then and there, but quickly realized that she couldn’t just pick a knight she hadn’t seen in action. She had to at least act like she cared. So, the Princess sighed, and settled back in her chair.

The Captain turned to face him in an open stretch of field. They drew their swords, and within moments they closed the distance between them, weapons clashing with a resounding _clang!_

It was hard to truly gauge a knight’s battlefield prowess based on a few drills and spars in training, but by the way he moved, his vibrant blue quills almost glowing in the morning sunlight (she’d never seen someone with such a color fur before), she could tell he was a well-trained soldier. While the Captain fought with slower, more powerful strikes, the hedgehog moved swift and quick, light on his feet. The Captain brought his sword down and his opponent quickly brought up his shield to parry, then delivered a quick kick to the echidna’s stomach, sending him tumbling to the ground.

She looked at her pocket watch. A quarter until ten. When had she lost track of time?

With the grace and poise of a Princess (and not of a stubborn young adult who was forced by her father to do this), she stood from her seat. A few knights’ eyes flickered in her direction at the movement, and certainly all of them took notice as she descended the wooden staircase to the training grounds below. As her bulky boots made contact with the grass, the echidna Captain offered her a quick bow before turning to his unit.

“Soldiers, in line!”

Within an instant, every knight was standing in a neat block, eight per row. Their armor glinted in the morning sun and Amy couldn’t help but admire the discipline in all of them—this unit was certainly a strong one. Amy walked down the side of the block until her eyes caught a shock of blue somewhere in the middle. She strode in-between the rows, her hands held comfortably behind her back. Stopping and facing the knight, she took a breath. She looked him in the eye.

“You.”

Without another word, she turned and marched out from the block, followed by the knight she had chosen. She noted the absolutely baffled look on the echidna’s face as the two of them passed. That surely meant she had made a good choice, a choice that would work well in her favor.

“Father, I have chosen a knight,” Amy Rose announced as she entered the throne room, her new knight just behind her. He knelt before the king, just a few paces to her right.

“Good,” He said, sitting up straighter in his seat on the throne. “What is your name, soldier?”

“Sonic, Your Majesty.”

The King nodded. “You are to accompany the Princess at all times,” he said. “Guard her with your life, soldier.”

Amy sighed, turning and heading out of the throne room. “Come along."

After walking for a few minutes, Amy stopped abruptly in the hall and turned to face Sonic. The door to her personal quarters sat just behind her, giving her a perfect escape route from this new knight.

“Let me lay down some ground rules,” she growled. Sonic’s face lit up with mild surprise at the suddenness of her actions.

“First, give me space. If you so much as think about breathing down my neck and trailing me like some sort of lost puppy, you’ll be on the receiving end of my hammer.”

He nodded. Good.

“Second, I do not need rescuing. I do not need protecting. I am perfectly capable on my own, and I expect you to respect that.”

The knight’s head cocked to the side slightly. “So… you’re telling me not to do my job.”

“Precisely.”

“Pardon me, Princess, but I don’t think the King will take too kindly to that.”

“I don’t care what my father says.” Amy said that with a finality to her tone, not letting Sonic input anything more to the conversation. She entered her quarters, and unlike every other knight before him, he didn’t make any move to follow.

When she came out later for lunchtime, Sonic was still there, standing at attention just beside the doorway. But when she continued walking, she didn’t hear the telltale taps of armored boots behind her. Out of curiosity, she glanced over her shoulder, to find the knight still standing by the door, his eyes trained on her, but making no move to follow.

Forty-five minutes later, she exited the dining hall to find that her knight was now standing at attention at that doorway. She headed to the library, and two hours later stepped out to find him at the library door.

So he was treading the fine line between doing his job and not disobeying her.

“I believe I told you not to follow me,” Amy said as the library doors fell shut behind her.

“I like to think I’m doing a good job of not breathing down your neck and, um, what was it?” He paused for a moment. “Oh! Following you like a lost puppy.”

So he had a sharp tongue. That could prove to be a problem.

“Are you _mocking_ me!?” Amy raised her voice, and Sonic’s ears flattened back against his head, clearly aware that he had said the wrong thing. Before he could even react, Amy had her hammer lifted above her head, ready to bring it down.

But Amy froze with her hammer at its apex, puzzled, as Sonic didn’t so much as flinch. Anyone else would beg for mercy, cower away, but Sonic simply stood, head bowed.

“Y… you’re not going to fight back? Try to get away? Anything?”

“No, Your Highness,” the knight said quietly.

Amy lowered her hammer slowly, returning it to its collapsed position slung across her back. “Wh—why not?”

“If it’s what Her Highness wishes, who am I to resist?”

Amy didn’t respond, baffled. A moment passed. Two.

“I know why you picked me. I am well aware of your reputation,” he continued, his voice soft, gentle. “Countless knights cycled through your charge, driven to tears, anxiety, resignation—sometimes not just from that position, but from the entire force. I’m nothing more than a game to you. I will not pretend to understand your motivation, given how kind and caring you are to everyone else around you.”

He paused for a beat, took a deep breath.

“But, Your Highness, my loyalty lies with you, whether you want it or not.”

Sonic bowed, and the Princess simply opted to walk away, leaving the knight by the library doors.


	2. KINGDOM MOBIUS: Act 2

As the weeks dragged on, Sonic showed no sign of wanting to resign, and that infuriated Amy. He met Amy’s resistance and respectfully pushed back, ever so gently, and it wasn’t long until Amy realized that her appointed knight’s stubbornness mirrored her own. Her own decision was bound to be her undoing, she realized from her position dramatically draped across her bed, her head hanging off the edge towards the ground. Sonic was respectful of her boundaries, but how long would it last before all her freedoms vanished? Her father would certainly soon try to order more restrictions upon him, and, in association, on her.

Sonic, just as the other knights before him, was a physical reminder of her duties as the Princess of Mobius, and she loathed him for it.

A knock on her door snapped her out of her reverie. It wasn’t brash and jarring like her father’s knock, yet not timid like Gadget’s was. It sounded gentle, kind, nonintrusive. Which meant it was Sonic. Curse him and his stupid, respectful demeanor, his undying loyalty, his unexpected perfectness for the job she had tried to seek the most imperfect for. Amy got off her bed and trudged to the door, opening it.

“I apologize for disturbing you,” Sonic said. “Your father wishes to remind you that the war meeting is in an hour and a half, and he expects you to be there.”

“I know,” Amy said shortly. Honestly, she had forgotten.

“Do you need any help getting ready—”

“No.” 

Amy slammed the door in his face.

Usually, princesses would have a few aides to help them get ready for events like this, given that the more formal royal attire can be a pain to put on alone. However, Amy had always preferred to do it herself, even if it took longer. She approached her wardrobe and removed a sky blue dress lined with white lace which she painstakingly put on—struggling with the ribbon in the back that she couldn’t quite reach. She applied her makeup, sighing softly as she stared at her reflection. Oh, how she dreaded meetings like this. They were way too long, boring, and useless to be wearing such uncomfortable clothing to. 

She turned around in the mirror, examining her poorly-tied ribbon, then untied it and tried again. It looked worse the second time. Why was she having so much trouble with this today? She’s certainly tied that knot before. She tried once more, for good measure, then untied it again in frustration. Before she could try to stop herself, she made her way across the room and opened the door; Sonic glanced over at her but didn’t say a word. Amy turned around, her back facing the knight.

“Can you tie this for me?” she asked softly, looking over her shoulder at him. He looked surprised.

Gloved hands pulled the ribbon taut, and she tried not to pay any mind to the gentle tension she felt as he tied the knot, his hands so close to her waist… She fussed with her quills, trying to get a couple of strays to lay flat. Trying to look busy.

“I wouldn’t say I’m an expert in the art of ribbon tying,” Sonic said, breaking the silence. “But I’m all done, Your Highness.”

“Thank you,” Amy said. She turned to face him, nodded, then closed the door. She tried not to pay any attention to the soft smile on his face, most certainly because of his surprise at the more amicable interaction.

She observed the knot in her mirror. It was certainly not tied professionally, as he was not an aide—his fingers were trained to nock arrows, to wield swords, not tie delicate knots. Perhaps it wasn’t as pretty of a knot as she would have liked. It looked much like a simple bow knot a commoner would put on a gift; but it was certainly better than what she could have done, so she couldn’t bring herself to fault him (even if something like this would have been the perfect opportunity to try to push him away). Once she was ready, with thirty minutes to spare before the start of the meeting, she stepped out of her quarters. She carried her shoes in her hands, deeming that there was no point in wearing those uncomfortable things for longer than she had to. She would put them on just outside of the board room door, and hopefully her father wouldn’t take notice of the unprofessionalism.

“Come along,” she said flatly, gesturing for Sonic to follow; and for the first time, she allowed Sonic to follow behind her as the two of them made the journey to the opposite end of the castle, where the board room was. She justified this by telling herself that they were both expected to be there—even if Sonic wasn’t to participate in the meeting itself, being just a knight— so they might as well walk together. 

The board room was a large, open space with a long cherry wood table in the very center, atop a lavish carpet. The walls, painted a soft dark green, were lined with torches currently not in use, as they were not needed at this time of afternoon; but flint and steel sat atop the hearth to the north in case they, or the hearth, needed to be lit. Windows lined the west wall floor to ceiling, allowing ample sunlight to flood the room, diffused slightly by the sheer curtains to soften the shadows that fell on its occupants. Amy remembered sitting by those windows as a child, the curtains pulled aside, staring outside for hours and daydreaming of what it would be like to run around in the world beyond the castle.

A few nobles were filtering into the room. The King sat at the head of the table, and the empty chair beside him was certainly hers, so she made her way over and sat down. Multiple knights were stationed within the room, only those with high enough rankings to be allowed to overhear the information discussed in the meeting. Sonic was posted at the south wall, standing beside the echidna Captain. The two of them were talking quietly, their voices blending into the murmurs of the gathering nobles who were idly engaging in small talk before the meeting began. Bored of engaging in small talk, she turned her attention over to their conversation.

“—how are things with the Princess?” The echidna asked. His voice was deep and gruff. She couldn’t help but think it was fitting for the Royal Guard’s captain.

“Oh, Knuckles, it’s great.” Sonic replied, “I mean, I’m basically a prince.”

Amy was ready to get up and strangle him right then and there. 

Knuckles scoffed. “Shut up, no you’re not.”

Sonic just laughed. Amy narrowed her eyes. Some jokester he was.

“Really, though,” Knuckles pressed, “What’s she like?”

Sonic paused for a moment. He glanced over in Amy’s direction, and for a fleeting moment their eyes met, before Amy quickly looked away and pretended to be interested in the papers on the table in front of her.

“She’s wonderful,” Sonic said, his voice quiet enough that she could only just make out his words. “A kind soul. Caring, empathetic, warm.”

“Towards you?”

“Oh, _heavens_ no. She treats me like a fly on the wall.”

“And yet you speak so highly of her.”

“I speak the truth.”

His loyalty continued to infuriate her. How could it be that after she’d tried so hard to get him to resign, he still spoke such genuine praise? 

She was distracted by her thoughts when her father beside her rose to his feet. Amy followed suit. Her father, tall and imposing, loomed over the table, casting Amy almost entirely in shadows. All the murmurs died down, attention falling on the royal family.

“As you all well know, the Robotnik Empire continues to grow by the day,” The King started. “His machine armies have taken over a large chunk of our territories to the west, cutting off many of our supply routes. Trade is down, agriculture is down, and our citizens are going hungry. All the while, the Wind Spirit is still nowhere to be seen.”

The King and the Princess sat back down.

“My mother once said, years before she passed,” Amy spoke up, “That the Wind Spirit’s new vessels would show signs as early as birth, and as late as ten years.”

She paused.

“It has been twenty-five years since the the Wind Spirit’s last vessel, a native to the kingdom of Sol, passed. It is safe to assume that perhaps the Wind Spirit has died, or Her mortal incarnate lay in hiding, unwilling to participate in our war. Without our protector, we must fend for ourselves.”

“Our blacksmith has been collecting intel on the machines Dr. Robotnik has sent to attack us. Mr. Prower, if you will.” The King said, gesturing to the teenaged fox, who Amy hadn’t even noticed was in attendance at this meeting. He was dressed in relatively decent formal clothes, but he was no noble, and it showed. He likely purchased the suit he wore at a second-hand shop in the lower district of Mobius; it didn’t quite fit him right. Amy made a mental note to get that kid something personally tailored, her treat; he was the Royal Family’s appointed blacksmith, after all.

“These things are far more technologically advanced than we have ever seen,” Prower began. What was his first name? Amy couldn’t remember. “constructed of steel and capable of moving completely on their own. It is unknown as to if they have sentience, per se, but they certainly follow Egg—uh, Robotnik’s orders.”

The blacksmith went on with a whole bunch of technical jargon, weird terms Amy didn’t understand, concepts and theories that went right above her head. The general consensus, though, was that We Don’t Know How Robotnik Has Gotten Such Advanced Technology, But We’re Hoping To Possibly Reverse Engineer It So We Can Use Such Technology To Our Own Advantage.

As the meeting dragged on, Amy found herself absentmindedly doodling pictures of kittens on the back of one of her papers. She was by no means an artist, so they were very crude drawings, but it certainly was better than paying attention. When her father confiscated the charcoal and paper from her, she sighed, reluctantly returning her attention to the meeting. As bored as she was, this was her responsibility.

“We shall send letters to each of the kingdoms,” her father was saying, “inviting them to attend an alliance meeting on the date of the next full moon.”

Amy stood from her seat. “No,” she said. The King looked up at her, mouth agape, clearly outraged.

“Letters of invitation will not suffice,” the Princess continued, “If we wish to secure all three of our neighbors as allies—ESPECIALLY to the north—we will need to meet with the leaders face-to-face.”

“What are you suggesting?” The King asked, marginally less outraged and slightly more intrigued by her proposition.

“I will lead a small group to visit each of the kingdoms. Perhaps four or five others, at most, disguised as common travelers. We do not want to draw attention.”

“We will do no such thing,” The King snapped. “It is far too dangerous. I will have our scribes begin drafting the letters— thank you all for attending this meeting. Everyone is dismissed.”

The nobles began filtering out of the room.

“I will not allow you to go on such an excursion,” the King whispered harshly to Amy. “You have duties here.”

“My _duty,_ ” Amy stressed, “Is to my kingdom. I am no good to my kingdom if I am locked away in the castle.”

“Your duty is to remain safe, as to not endanger our royal line!” The King countered, “You have yet to find a suitable spouse. When I was your age—”

“Father, don’t start with that nonsense. I am not you. I do not wish to discuss this.”

The King took a deep breath. “I have given you the freedom to pick a noble to marry, and you have chosen none. I am at my limit with you, Amy. I will arrange a marriage between you and that Duke you spent time with as a child. Big.”

“No!” Amy yelled, “I have no interest in him. Just give me time, father. I’ll find someone, but I wish to assess all my options. I will await the return of the Wind Spirit. And in the meantime, I will go out and personally speak with each of our neighboring leaders.”

“We have already determined that the Wind Spirit may be dead—!”

The King was interrupted by a loud crash from just outside the castle. One peek through the windows confirmed the worst: badniks approaching. The castle’s perimeter wall had fallen.


	3. KINGDOM MOBIUS: Act 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> imagine, if you will, the "is this a pigeon?" meme. The guy gesturing to the butterfly is me. The butterfly is labeled "robots." The caption reads, "Is this medieval?"

The King turned to Sonic, who was still standing at attention along the wall. 

“Take the Princess to safety. If she so much as gets scratched, you will be personally at fault,” The King ordered, and Sonic nodded sharply. He loosely took Amy by the arm to guide her out of the room, but didn’t object when she ripped her arm away from him in response. The two of them exited the room hurriedly.

Amy stopped abruptly in the hall. “I am going out there,” She said slowly, intimidatingly, “and you aren’t going to stop me.”

“Your Highness—”

“I _will_ fight.”

“Your Highness.”

“I don’t care what you say, I don’t care what my father says! I’m tired of being locked away, I’m sick of being useless!” The volume of her voice escalated as she continued, until soon she was yelling. She shoved Sonic away, causing him to stumble backwards, and turned to march away from him.

“Your Highness!” Sonic grabbed her arm once more, pulling her back. Oh, how he would _pay_ for that breach in protocol— “You cannot fight in a dress like that—We’re going to your quarters so you can get changed, first.”

Amy’s brain short-circuited. She stared at him. “You’re—you’re not going to stop me?”

“Of course not,” Sonic said, dropping his hand from her arm, “But I insist that you at least allow me to fight alongside you.”

“The King will surely punish you.”

“Then so be it. But _you_ are my direct priority, and I must support any decision you make.”

Amy nodded, then kicked off her uncomfortable shoes and turned to run towards her quarters, Sonic just a few paces behind her. When they arrived at her quarters, she kicked her door open and hurried inside, yanking a surprised Sonic in with him.

“Help me get this off,” She barked, “It’ll be faster.”

Sonic complied, helping her as she needed. He certainly wasn’t accustomed to things like this, as was apparent in his nervousness, and how he turned his back to her as soon as the restrictive blue dress was off her shoulders. She threw the dress to the floor in a messy heap. Outside, a battle was raging, and there was no time to put proper care into hanging the dress to avoid wrinkles. Amy noted that Sonic didn’t even so much as glance at her until she was standing before him in her usual attire: a red and white dress with a flared skirt and tall, heavy boots to match.

“Before you say anything,” Amy growled, yanking Sonic back out the door, “I can fight in this, I’ve done it before.”

Sonic didn’t respond, running behind her. The two of them crashed through the main castle doors and rushed outside into the chaos. Amy immediately obliterated an errant badnik with her hammer and laughed excitedly.

When the duo made it to the breach in the wall, Amy was quick to jump into the fray, smashing badniks left and right. The breach was a large hole in the base, likely caused by some sort of explosion, where badniks were coming in near nonstop. Sonic did just as he said he would: he fought alongside her as opposed to trying to overprotect her as any other knight would. As it turned out, he was a valuable ally.

“On your left!” Sonic’s voice rang out, and Amy whirled around to face the incoming robot, her hammer coming down on its head. One more strike from her hammer and the badnik was reduced to a heap on the ground.

 _Every badnik has a weakpoint. For the humanoids, the core processing is located in either the back of its head or within its chest area, depending on the model,_ she remembered the blacksmith saying during the meeting earlier, _focus your attacks at those points._

Amy cast a glance over at Sonic. He was surrounded by bee bots, deflecting their attacks with his shield. They had him nearly surrounded, unrelenting.

“Heads up!” Amy yelled, and spun in a circle to gain momentum before lobbing her hammer in his direction, taking out about half of the bots in the process. He ducked down to avoid getting hit, the look on his face making evident that he was impressed with the strength of her throw. Her hammer collided with the castle’s perimeter wall with a loud thud. The other half of the bee bots met their fates by Sonic’s blade. He grabbed Amy’s hammer from where it had clattered to the ground and tossed it back to her, and she caught it with ease, assuming an offensive position once more.

Just off to the side, Amy saw a massive badnik, moving on large belted wheels, heading in their direction. 

“There!” Amy yelled to the surrounding knights. “That has to be the control bot. Take it out, and the rest will fall!”

The knights saluted and hurried in the direction of the massive automaton, followed by Amy and her knight.

“Tails!” Amy heard Knuckles yell from the other side of the battlefield, and she glanced over at him. “Any intel on this one?”

Amy was not expecting to see the blacksmith on the battlefield, who was hovering in the air suspended by his twin tails, making quick work of a badnik with a heavy duty wrench. He seemed to be able to hold his own pretty well. She was surprised.

“Its armor looks impenetrable,” Tails observed. “Though it likely only has a sheet of glass protecting its optical sensors—”

“Quit the technical nonsense and give it to us straight, buddy!” Sonic yelled out to him.

“Hit the eyeball!” Tails yelled back. He didn’t need to tell Sonic twice, because he was in action in an instant.

“Wait for my signal—” Knuckles started to order, but Sonic was already on the move. He charged straight towards the towering bot. Knuckles sighed and slapped a hand to his face, before looking at the other soldiers and yelling “Cover him!”

Amy was shocked, was he really going to take this thing head on? It had to be at least five or six times his size, yet Sonic showed no fear. Amy and the knights took out the smaller badniks that tried to get in Sonic’s way, and it wasn’t long before he had scaled the massive machine. It certainly didn’t appreciate having Sonic on top of it, because it began doing everything in its power to get him off. It punched at where Sonic clung as he climbed, and just at the last minute Sonic heaved himself upwards onto the bot’s shoulder, causing the machine’s fist to slam into its own chest, leaving a sizeable dent in the armor.

Sonic climbed up onto its head, drew his sword and plunged it directly into the eye. Glass shattered, and a few knights on the ground dove out of the way as broken shards fell towards them. The control bot reeled backwards, and Sonic grabbed a small bomb off his belt and shoved it into the bot’s eye socket. With a flick of flint against his sword, the fuse was lit, and Sonic jumped.

He _jumped._ Off the robot. Falling from such a height would surely leave him badly injured, at the very least. He could break a leg trying to land, he could tumble and his chest plate could get dented, crushing him, he wouldn’t be able to breathe— Amy watched, horrified. It wasn’t long until the blacksmith flew up and met him halfway, catching him and taking him to the ground safely. Amy released a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding.

“Move! Move!” Knuckles yelled, and everybody began running away from the bot. Sonic grabbed Amy and tackled her to the ground just as the bomb exploded, using his shield to block the both of them from the flying sparks and shrapnel. And, just as expected, when the large badnik came tumbling down, the other badniks lost function completely.

Looking up at Sonic from where they hunkered on the ground, she came to a realization. Sonic had mentioned he knew about Amy’s reputation, how she treated her personal guards. By extension, the whole knight force surely did— 

Bright sparks flew through the air and illuminated the world around her as time itself seemed to be going in slow-motion. It felt like a fairytale moment. The light from the explosion made his already vibrant blue fur seem even brighter; she still couldn't believe that color was natural. 

—That meant Knuckles hadn’t been shocked at her choosing Sonic because Sonic was the worst choice. He had been shocked because she had chosen their strongest knight.

When all the commotion died down, Sonic lowered his shield and helped Amy to her feet. Without thinking, driven by the post battle euphoria, she grabbed him and hugged him tightly, twirling him around in circles and—

She stopped, quickly shoving him away and folding her arms across her chest, facing away from him with a scowl. Sonic didn’t comment, but when Amy glanced over at him, he wore a knowing smile on his face. 

The echidna was barking orders at the surrounding unit of knights, starting the cleanup process. The fox had taken to examining the control bot with an eager look on his face. Soon, some construction workers arrived on the scene and began repairing the wall. Medics tended to the wounded soldiers. Everyone was hard at work, doing their part to return things back to normal after the attack.

“Come,” Amy said, breaking their silence. “If we hurry, my father may never know we were out here.”

Sonic nodded. But as they turned around, they realized they were far too late, as the King was standing just behind them.

“Father,” Amy addressed, changing tactics and trying to run damage control, “I was just out here overseeing cleanup.”

“Don’t bother,” the King snapped. He turned his attention to Sonic, who had taken a knee beside Amy, head down.

“You,” He growled, “Disobeyed my direct orders. You will be punished for your insubordination.”

“No!” Amy yelled, catching the King by surprise. “He was doing his job!”

“By taking you out into battle when I explicitly ordered him to keep you safe!?”

“ _I_ dragged _him_ out here! It was me who wanted to fight! And, for the record, he did keep me safe. I am completely uninjured because of him!”

The King frowned. He looked Amy up and down, scanning to confirm that she truly was uninjured. Then, he turned to the knights in his own personal guard.

“Take him to the dungeon. He will spend the night there, and we will discuss his fate in the morning.”

“Father!” Amy yelled, outraged, as the knights grabbed her knight and hoisted him up from his kneeling position. Amy disliked having a knight appointed to her, but her father was being plain cruel. She had to play her cards right.

“You can’t do this! What of me? You’ll leave me unprotected for the rest of the day?”

“You’ve never had a problem with it before,” The King stated, before turning on his heels and walking back towards the castle, followed by his knights who had Sonic restrained. He was right, she certainly didn’t have a problem with it, but for some reason it still stung. As the King disappeared from sight, Amy was left in the middle of the field, standing alone.


	4. KINGDOM MOBIUS: Act 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The squad's all here!

The dungeons were a cold, miserable place. Amy had been down there a couple times when she was a teenager, to observe her father interrogating prisoners. She despised how inhumane it was, shoving a living being into a tiny cell with nothing other than the hard concrete to use as bedding, such minimal light that the eyes would never be able to properly adjust. The food provided was at best horrifically stale, and at worst moldy. As much as she despised and rejected the guards her father forced her to have, Amy would never condone sending an appointed knight down there.

After her father took Sonic away, Amy could have very easily snuck out of the castle and run around free for a while. She could have gone to the market, or had a picnic in the fields of daisies that littered the grasslands just surrounding the kingdom’s borders. She could have gone for a jog, she could have gone fishing with her friend Big. It was a nice day out, she could have done virtually anything with her freedom, but she didn’t; she stayed in her bedroom, sitting at her desk and fiddling absentmindedly with a feather quill while she stared out the window.

She hoped Sonic was holding up alright.

Her ears flicked as she heard the door creak, and footsteps entered the room. She didn’t flinch, as she recognized their owner immediately. Her father entered her peripheral vision and placed a bowl of soup and some bread down on the desk, off to her side. She didn’t turn to look at him, opting to continue staring out the window as the sun dipped below the horizon, painting the sky with a soft orange glow.

“You missed dinner,” he said. His voice, for once, was soft, lacking its usual harshness. “I figured you’d run off somewhere, but I’m quite surprised to find you still here.”

When Amy didn’t respond, the King simply sighed and left the room without another word. On his way out, he lit a lantern, illuminating her darkening room. Amy was relieved that he left so quickly, given that she had no patience for her father tonight. He may have been trying to act friendly, but Amy saw him as nothing more than a cruel, manipulative old man who had put an innocent soldier in jail.

_When I become queen,_ she wrote in her journal later that night as her soup sat there untouched, now cold, _I will never do something so cruel and unjust as that._

Amy must have fallen asleep at her desk at some point, because when she awoke in the morning her neck and back were sore from being hunched over all night. She sat up and stretched her arms over her head, then grabbed the untouched soup and bread her father brought her last night and headed out of her quarters.

“Take this to the kitchen, please,” she said to the first servant she passed, handing off the old food. She then headed for the dining hall. The King sat on one end of the dining table, eating, and Amy took the seat on the far opposite end and waited as oats and fruit were served to her. As she poked at her food, her father stood, told her to meet him in the throne room when she was done, then exited.

Fifteen minutes later, Amy found herself in the throne room, standing before her father, who sat in his gold-plated throne fitted with red velvet lining. A second, identical throne, once occupied by Amy’s mother years ago, now sit empty, gathering dust. She sighed softly at the cruel reminder of the death of her mother in her early teenage years. Her father was so much kinder before she passed away.

The King glanced up at her as she entered, then turned his attention to a nearby knight and barked, “Go to the dungeons and fetch her knight.”

The soldier nodded and disappeared from the throne room. 

“Amy,” the King said. “I’ve had some time to think.”

“That’s never good,” Amy mumbled with a roll of her eyes. Usually that meant she was in trouble.

“I have witnessed you in battle,” he continued. “You are strong: stronger than I knew. You took after your mother quite a bit.”

He let that hang in the air for a moment. Perhaps he was awaiting some sort of reaction from Amy, or perhaps he was simply gathering his thoughts. Amy remained silent.

“You are stubborn, just like she was. I have tried keeping you home, where you’d grow up unharmed and learn the ways of politics, but you’ve made it clear you crave something more than can be provided within the walls of the castle. That is why I’ve decided I will allow you to take a small team to each of the Kingdoms. I hope you will learn something valuable on your trip that you can bring back to Mobius.”

Amy gasped. Excitement bubbled up within her. She pushed it down for now, she had to handle this with grace, lest her father change his mind. “Father, are you sure?”

“Yes,” he said. “Your knight is being released with no further charges. I expect that you inform him of this when you see him. You may go pack your belongings, and can leave as soon as you deem you are ready.”

“Thank you, father,” She said with a small curtsy, then turned and headed out of the room. As soon as the throne room doors closed, she took off, sprinting down the castle hallways, whirling around corners and nearly knocking an unfortunate servant off his feet. She burst out of the front doors and headed down the path towards the entrance to the dungeon, meeting Sonic and the knight her father had sent, halfway down the road.

Sonic had held up just fine, she noted when she slowed to a stop just in front of him and the other knight. His blue fur didn’t look quite as vibrant as usual- it was dusty and ruffled- and he was walking rather stiffly, but he still had that bright-eyed expression that Amy had come to know well over the course of his appointment. He bowed to the princess with a soft smile on his face.

“I can take him from here,” Amy said to the knight her father had sent, and the knight bowed as well, before walking away and leaving her with Sonic.

“How was your stay in Mobius Castle’s finest hotel?” Amy asked as Sonic rose from his bow. The two of them headed back up the road towards the castle.

“I didn’t take you to be much into jokes, Your Highness,” He said with a laugh. “But, if you insist, it was wonderful. The complementary bread was delightful.”

Amy rolled her eyes, trying to suppress her own laugh. “Okay, okay. Really though, are you alright? I may have a reputation for… you know, but I would never condone sending a knight to the dungeon.”

“Yes, Your Highness,” Sonic replied, breaking attention to brush some dust off of his chainmail. He must have taken his armor off at some point (or, perhaps, it had been taken from him), but he remained in a cotton long-sleeve shirt underneath a vest of chainmail, his gloves, brown slacks, and boots. On any other occasion, she’d certainly reprimand him for breaking attention like that without her cue, but she figured it best to cut him some slack for once. After all, he returned to his dutiful posture immediately afterwards—she noticed that he even glanced warily in her direction, clearly assuming that she would give him crap for that.

Why was she having so much trouble finding the heart to try and push him to quit, these days?

“Good,” Amy said. “I have some good news. My father has allowed me to lead a mission to go speak with the leaders of each of our neighboring Kingdoms. I suggest you go wash up and pack whatever belongings and provisions you might need.”

Sonic nodded.

“Before I dismiss you, though, I was wondering if you knew of any knights in particular that you think would be good for this? I’d like to assemble a small group to keep us from drawing too much attention.”

Amy was looking out ahead of her, but in her periphery she saw Sonic smile. “I know the perfect team,” he said.

“Great. Gather them and meet me in the board room tonight at sunset so I can brief them. We will depart tomorrow morning, just before sunrise.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“You are dismissed.”

Sonic departed. Amy hurried to her quarters and began working on packing the essentials. A couple sets of clothes, her journal and a stick of charcoal to write with (and, as an afterthought, her feather quill, too, in case she needed to write anything in ink), and her hammer. She set her pack down on the floor by her door, then headed to the board room and waited.

Sonic, as Amy had come to learn since having him as her knight, was incredibly punctual. Not even a minute after the sun touched the horizon, Sonic appeared in the doorway. He took a few steps off to the side of the door and didn’t move any further than that, bowing to the Princess. 

“Your Highness,” he addressed, one hand gesturing to the door while the other lay over his heart as he bowed.

As if on cue, just two others stepped into the room and Sonic rose from his bow, opting to stand at attention just off to the side. Amy had certainly been thinking he’d pick a few more, but she supposed a group of four including herself and her knight would work just fine. 

The first to enter the room was Knuckles, the echidna she’d identified to be one of the Royal Guard’s captains. A skilled solider, for certain. She nodded thoughtfully, having someone with the tactical knowledge and strength of a Captain would certainly be an advantage. His units would have to be displaced while he was out, though there were plenty of others of his status to assign those units to until his return.

The second to enter the room was the teenaged fox and castle blacksmith. Tails, she remembered Knuckles saying his name was during the battle yesterday. He would certainly serve as the brains of the group, but could hold well in combat when needed.

“This is our team,” Sonic said. “I can attest to their strength and tenacity.”

“Thank you, soldier,” Amy said, standing from her seat. She turned to Knuckles and Tails. “You two will be aiding Sonic and I on our travels. You both were at the war meeting, so certainly you remember the proposition I made that my father initially shut down—We will be inviting each Kingdom leader to our alliance meeting in person. We will be leaving tomorrow at before sunrise, so be sure to pack your belongings and any provisions you may need.”

“Yes, Your Highness,” The two of them said in unison.

“Please, just call me Amy. We’ll be working very closely for the coming weeks. It’ll very likely be hard enough as it is, so I want you to know now: we don’t need to keep up with formalities, okay? There’s no need to feel intimidated by me.” She smiled kindly at Knuckles and Tails, but made it a point to not look at Sonic while speaking. She was certain all three of them sensed the intention, too: Knuckles and Tails briefly glanced over at Sonic, who was still standing at attention just off to the side, and then back at Amy.

“You may go finish your preparations,” She said. “Get some rest. Tomorrow will be a long day.”


	5. KINGDOM SOL: Act 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter is denoted in my outline as the "I'm blushing, but f*ck off" chapter

It was still dark when Amy, Sonic, Knuckles, and Tails met at the front gates of Mobius Castle. Sonic and Knuckles carried bags of provisions—food, water, and various supplies they’d need for the trip, while Amy and Tails carried their belongings. Sonic and Knuckles didn’t have many belongings aside from the armor and weapons they wore on their person, but Tails, as it turned out, was keen on bringing a project he’d been working on and the tools he’d need to make headway on it.

“Our first destination is the kingdom of Sol, located in the southern desert.” Amy announced as Sonic and Knuckles hitched everyone’s bags and equipment onto the backs of two horses. “There, we shall meet with Queen Blaze.”

Amy, admittedly, was excited. She hadn’t seen Blaze since she was young. The two of them, in their youth, used to be close friends and playmates while their parents were in meetings. Once Blaze ascended to the throne at the unfortunate age of thirteen, she became too busy to spend time with Amy, and they drifted apart. She hoped Blaze was doing well.

Once the horses were saddled, the four of them mounted and waited for the guards to open the gates. On a dappled brown horse sat Knuckles at the front, with Tails sitting just behind him; and on a sleek black horse Sonic sat with one hand on the reigns and the other hand extended down towards Amy to help her climb up. She smacked Sonic’s hand out of the way and climbed onto the horse on her own, tentatively finding her seat just behind her appointed knight. She shifted her weight a little, trying to find a comfortable spot, and suddenly the horse lurched forwards. Amy’s hands desperately searched for a place to grab so she wouldn’t fall off, and they found purchase at Sonic’s waist. Her hands were on his armor, rather than touching him directly—but certainly he was aware, as she had jostled him slightly upon first contact. She gritted her teeth as she felt her face heat up. 

Why, why was she so flustered over something so simple? She’d ridden horseback with others before…

Amy turned and offered a small wave to her father, who stood watching them depart with his arms folded across his chest. The castle guards opened the gates and Amy turned to face forwards once more as the two horses trotted away from the castle grounds. The streets of Mobius were empty this early in the morning, for which Amy was grateful. The less people who saw them depart, the better, as nobody would spread rumor and bring attention to the Princess’s absence from the castle. By the time the sun began shedding light across the kingdom the group had already exited the urban territory, now riding through the rolling hills, farmlands, and daisy fields. She smiled to herself. She’d always thought the grasslands that housed her native kingdom beautiful.

“I’ve been trying to apply what I’ve learned from Eggman’s technology to create a device that will track the Wind Spirit,” Tails said, breaking the silence at around mid-morning, an hour after they’d passed into lands Amy found unfamiliar. They were certainly no longer in Mobius territory. Tails produced a small yellow handheld device from his bag and held it up.

“How’s it been going?” Knuckles asked.

“There’s some kinks I still have to work through, but I’ve been making some serious headway. I think. This high-tech stuff is weird but fascinating. The idea is to get the thing to beep when it senses the Wind Spirit’s presence nearby… So far, I’ve got it to beep, but I’m still working out how to get it to detect something as fickle and mysterious as a Spirit.”

“That’s awesome, buddy, keep up the good work—” Sonic started.

“I did not authorize you to speak,” Amy snapped, and Sonic immediately fell silent, turning his attention away from Tails and back at the road ahead. Tails gave Sonic a sad, sympathetic smile.

“Egg…man?” Amy asked after a moment, breaking the heavy, awkward silence that followed.

“Oh, sorry,” Tails said with a nervous laugh, “It’s what the three of us call Robotnik. Have you ever seen the guy before? He’s practically shaped like an egg.”

“The three of you,” Amy mused. “You know each other well?”

“We’re brothers,” Knuckles replied.

“Brothers?”

“Not by blood, but we grew up together.”

Amy smiled. She found it sweet that they shared a familial bond. She wondered how they’d come to mutually consider themselves such, though she didn’t ask, as not to pry. The conversation dissipated, and the four of them fell into their rhythm of silence once more.

By the time the sun was straight above them, they were following a dirt path that lead southwards. The grasslands slowly faded into something hotter, dryer. The grasses were brown and dying, leading towards a long stretch of barren, rocky dirt. Amy took a moment to stretch her arms.

“Let’s stop here,” She said. “We can let the horses rest for an hour and grab a bite to eat.”

She certainly didn’t have to tell Tails and Knuckles twice, as they had already dismounted their horse and loosely tied it to a nearby tree. Tails dug through one of the group’s provisions bags until he found a loaf of bread to split between the four of them, while Knuckles cut down a small tree with his sword and used its trunk to fashion a rather crude place to sit (albeit better than sitting on the ground). Amy dismounted, soon followed by Sonic.

Amy sat on the bench beside Knuckles and took a piece of the bread, watching as Sonic sat cross-legged on the ground a few paces away, facing the dirt path, on high alert.

“If we keep up our pace,” Amy said, watching as Tails brought the last chunk of bread over to Sonic in silence, “We should be able to make it to Sol by tomorrow afternoon.”

That was accounting for any other breaks, as well as resting overnight. Sol, luckily, was the kingdom closest to Mobius, so it only made sense that it would be their first destination.

Once their hour’s rest passed, Knuckles and Tails untied their horse and mounted; this time with Tails in the front to steer, and Knuckles in the back. They seemed to have an unspoken system in place, offering each other rest from the fatigue that came from focusing on the road for so long.

Amy figured she would follow suit, hopping up on the front of the horse and allowing Sonic to climb up behind her. She soon came to realize the mistake she’d made as Sonic’s hands found her waist, in the same position hers had been in on him only an hour prior. She felt her face heat up once more. This was worse than before, she determined, because earlier she had only been touching the metal of his armor. With the roles reversed, there was nothing but the leather of his gauntlets and the fabric of her dress between them…

She shook her head to snap herself out of it. _Curses._ Why did this keep happening? Sonic was a knight, for goodness sake. Practically a commoner.

Their travels continued without event. Amy had certainly worried about the presence of badniks in these lands, as they had recently impeded on trade routes, but everything was quiet and peaceful, aside from Amy’s persistent thoughts of shoving Sonic off the side of the horse to get his hands off of her (something she wouldn’t dare act upon, a fall from a horse could risk great injury).

She didn’t hate it, and that was the problem. She hated that she enjoyed it.

When night fell, Amy gave the order to set up camp for the night. Horses were secured, bedrolls were set out, and the four of them settled down.

“I’ll take first watch,” Knuckles said. “Sonic, you can take second, and Tails can take third.”

“What about me?” Amy asked.

“You’ll get plenty of rest, Princess.”

“You know I’m more than capable of taking a watch, yes?”

“I have no doubt,” Knuckles said. “You’ll have your fair share of watch shifts over the course of our travels. But you’ll need time to get accustomed to living on the road, first. So get some rest.”

Amy nodded and laid down on her bedroll, staring up at the stars above. They sure were beautiful this far away from the Kingdom. They felt brighter. However, the beauty seemed to fade the longer she lay there. The ground was rocky and uncomfortable, the chirping of bugs unbearably loud. She understood what Knuckles meant by getting accustomed to life on the road, as she dearly missed her soft pillows and silk sheets back home. With a groan, she rolled over, and finding herself still uncomfortable she rolled in the other direction.

Not too long of struggling to find a comfortable spot passed before a hand rest on her shoulder. She looked up, to find Sonic, his quills just barely illuminated by the light of the moon, gazing down at her from where he crouched just to the left.

“What do you want?” She whispered harshly.

“Stand up for a second, Your Highness,” Sonic whispered back, his voice soft and gentle. Oh, curse him, why did he have to be like this? Such a kind soul. It drove her mad. 

Amy, by no means, had to comply with Sonic, but something inside her compelled her to stand; and so she did. Looking inquisitively at Sonic’s silhouette, she watched as he moved, bent over and grabbed something—oh, his bedroll—and slid it over just beside hers. What was he doing!? She was just about to give him a piece of her mind when he took her bedroll into his hands and carefully slid it on top of his, then pushed the two, stacked atop each other, back into the space where Amy had set up to sleep.

In the darkness, she could just barely make out as he gestured for her to lay back down, and she did so. It wasn’t perfect, but the extra layer helped substantially. A few paces off to her side, Sonic settled down on the rocky, unforgiving ground.

In the moments before sleep found her, she caught herself wondering: Sonic drove her mad, certainly, but mad in what way? She wasn’t quite sure anymore.

Amy awoke early in the morning and found she couldn’t fall back asleep. A quick glance around revealed it was sometime within Tails’ shift, so there was likely not much longer until their travels would continue. She stood up and joined Tails where he sat on a large rock just off to the side of their camp. He glanced over at her as she approached.

“How long have you been on watch?” Amy asked, stifling a yawn.

“About three hours, if my calculations are correct,” He said, holding his thumb and pointer finger up to the sky and squinting his eyes as he did whatever calculations come with tracking the position of the moon. 

“Mind if I join you?”

“Of course not, Your Highness.”

“Please,” Amy pulled herself up onto the rock just beside Tails and stared up at the stars. “Just call me Amy.”

“You don’t let Sonic call you that,” He muttered under his breath.

“He’s just a knight,” Amy said.

“So is Knuckles, but you gave him permission to break protocol.”

“He’s the Captain.”

“That makes no logical sense.” Tails sighed. He sat silently for a moment, dragging his fingers through the thin layer of dirt atop the rock, drawing out patterns.

“Why are you so mean to Sonic?” He finally asked, catching Amy by surprise. She wasn’t sure how to respond.

“I—”

“He’s nothing but kind to you.”

“It’s complicated.”

“Did he do something that you’re mad at him over?”

“No,” Amy sighed. “It’s—It’s the King. I’m frustrated over my father acting like I need to be protected, appointing knights to follow me around and coddle me. Sonic was just… one of those unfortunate enough to be assigned to my case.”

“Well,” Tails said, “I know I’m just the blacksmith, so you have no reason to listen to me, but… I implore you to consider him. If you take the time to get to know him, you may just find out that his motivation to be by your side isn’t because of the paycheck.”

Amy didn’t respond right away, letting what Tails said hang in the air around them. The two of them sat in silence until eventually, the sun breached the horizon, shedding light upon these dreary, lifeless lands.

“I should probably wake them up—” Tails began to shift his weight, getting ready to stand.

“Tell me about him,” Amy interrupted.

Tails glanced at her, then settled back in his spot, a soft smile on his face. “He’s a great friend. Always looking out for others before himself. He’s kind and gentle, but snarky, too.”

“Snarky?”

“Oh, certainly. He’s not afraid to speak his mind. It’s funny, I don’t think I’ve ever seen him mind his manners as much as he does when he’s around you.”

“That may be my own doing,” Amy said guiltily.

“Doubtful. It’s certainly not out of intimidation, but respect.”

Amy heard footsteps behind her. She quickly turned around to find Knuckles, climbing up onto the rock with her and Tails. It was a bit crowded with three, but Tails and Knuckles were clearly comfortable in such close vicinity.

“Are we talking about Sonic?” He asked with a grin.

“Yes,” Tails said. “Amy was asking about him. She hasn’t gotten the chance to know him properly, because he’s always on duty.”

“Oh, he’s an absolute rat bastard.”

“Language, Knuckles!” Tails exclaimed, laughing so hard he had to wipe away tears forming in his eyes, “You’re in the presence of the Princess!”

But Amy was laughing, too.

“Am I wrong, though?” Knuckles asked. “He’s hyperactive, quirky, and I pray you never have to see him do that nasty, shit-eating grin he does when he think’s he’s being funny.”

“Knuckles.” Tails reprimanded, likely ready to tell him off about his language again.

“Alright, alright,” Knuckles put his hands up in surrender, “But really though. Sonic’s a cool guy. Laid back, no restraints, free as the wind. If I didn’t know better, I’d say maybe he was the Wind Spirit’s incarnate.”

“But we all grew up on the streets together,” Tails said. “Never showed any signs.”

“Okay,” Amy said, glancing between Tails and Knuckles, “You two are saying a whole lot of very contradictory things.” Hyperactive, but laid back? Snarky, but kind? It made no sense.

“It’s just how he is,” Tails explained with a shrug, “It’s hard to explain. It’s something you’ll just have to see.”

He paused for a moment, before standing up. “But you’ll never see it if you don’t give him the chance.”

Leaving the conversation on that note, Tails hopped off the side of the rock and went to wake Sonic. Their travels continued, and rocky lands faded into hot, arid sand under the unrelenting sun.


	6. KINGDOM SOL: Act 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heya! If you're interested, I've got some doodles of some of my rough designs for this AU. Check 'em out, if you want! https://twitter.com/trenchcoatgecko/status/1337930678315446274

Luckily, the Kingdom of Sol wasn’t deep into the desert from this direction. By midday, just as Amy calculated, they tied up their horses just outside the walls of Sol’s border. It had been quite a while since Amy had last set foot within this kingdom, but she was always awed by the simplistic beauty of the place. Unlike the stone brick structures of Mobius, the desert provided a much different array of building materials, the most predominant being a light tan clay. The architecture was simple, with buildings of thick, dense walls and flat roofs. Along a few walls throughout the city were beautiful paintings, which Amy had learned in her schooling was created while the clay was still wet, so when the clay dried the pigment would be permanently baked into the structure.

Amy could marvel at this place for hours. Her favorite part was the large pool of water in the town square, so shimmering and blue amidst the tan and brown color scheme. And of course, logically, building a kingdom around an oasis was a smart move. A few children giggled as they played in the waters, splashing each other. 

It wasn’t much longer before they arrived at the castle.

“I am Amy Rose, Princess of Mobius,” Amy introduced herself to the guard at the gate of the castle. “I am here to visit Queen Blaze.”

The knight, a young koala, offered the Princess a brief bow before allowing them to pass through the gates. He escorted the group to the castle’s throne room.

“Your Majesty,” the knight addressed a lavender-furred cat who sat atop a clay throne with an ornate tapestry draped over the back, “You have visitors.”

Amy stepped into the room, her traveling companions a few paces behind. She met Blaze’s eyes and they simply stared at each other for a moment. Blaze stood from her throne, and it wasn’t long before the two of them ran to each other, meeting each other in the middle with a big hug.

“Oh, Amy,” Queen Blaze said, smiling ear to ear, “It’s so good to see you again.”

“Likewise,” Amy said, pulling away from the embrace.

“Come, come, let’s go get you settled. I’m sure you must be exhausted from your travels.” Blaze gestured for the group to follow, and she led them to her guest’s quarters.

“There’s only two rooms, I’m afraid,” the Queen said.

“That’s quite alright,” Amy said. She could keep Sonic posted just outside her room, and Knuckles and Tails could share the other room. 

As the Captain and the blacksmith began getting settled in the adjacent room, Blaze sat on the edge of the bed as Amy set her bags neatly on the floor beside the bed. Amy saw, out of the corner of her eye, the questioning look Blaze had on her face as she saw Sonic had remained standing at the doorway.

“So, what brings you here?” Blaze asked.

“Business, I’m afraid,” Amy said with a sigh. “I understand that you’re busy, so whenever you have an open slot of time to meet, let me know.”

“I always have time for you, Amy,” Blaze said with a smile, “But how does tomorrow morning sound? You can spend today getting settled and rested.”

“That is greatly appreciated, thank you. Tomorrow morning sounds perfect.”

The Queen of Sol nodded and stood, walking towards the doorway. “Let me or any of the castle staff know if you need anything, okay?”

“Of course.”

After finding herself sufficiently situated in her temporary lodging, she exited the room. Sonic, as it turned out, had broken attention in favor of staring longingly into the adjacent room, where Knuckles and Tails were currently engaged in a rowdy pillow fight. She felt a pang of sadness; Sonic was traveling with his brothers, yet he was estranged from them due to his duty to the Princess.

“Come with me,” Amy said to Sonic, and he jumped slightly, startled by her presence. “Sorry,” she added with a smile.

Sonic followed just beside her, his hands behind his back, his posture straight and stiff. They only made it a few steps before she stopped walking and looked over at him. A bead of sweat formed on his forehead, certainly he was hot with the amount of layers of armor he had on.

“Hold on,” She said, “Before we go, let’s get your armor off.”

“Yes, Your Highness,” Sonic said. She led him back to the room and assisted him at getting the heavy steel off his body. It took about ten minutes to get it all off, and when it was all gone he looked physically relieved. His underclothes were drenched with sweat, and Amy stepped outside the room to let him get changed into his spare clothes. As he got changed, she tried to calculate just how much that armor weighed. A shame math wasn’t her strong suit.

When Sonic emerged from the room, he wore a dark blue short-sleeved tunic and baggy brown pants that ended just below the knee. A belt around his waist supported his sword in its scabbard; despite taking off the armor, he still kept the weapon. His lower legs were covered in fabric wrappings that led down to plain black shoes, and his leather gauntlets were replaced with similar wrappings that went from his hands to his elbows.

Even when they settled down to rest the night before, Sonic hadn’t changed into clothes like this, instead electing to remove his armor and sleep in his chainmail tunic. Thus, this was the first time she’d seen him in anything other than his uniform. He looked quite different without all the formal armor.

She tore her attention away from her knight, instead focusing on where she was walking.

 _Let him in,_ She reminded herself. She had a feeling that would be easier said than done.

“At ease, Sonic,” Amy said, having caught that he was still trying to stand at attention beside her. Sonic relaxed. 

The two of them made their way out of the castle and into the surrounding down. The nice thing about visiting another kingdom, she mused, was that she didn’t attract the attention she would in her own kingdom. It was nice to blend in, for once.

“Have you ever been to Sol?” Amy asked.

“No, Your Highness,” Sonic said, “I’ve never been this far outside Mobius’s borders.”

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Hey,” Amy said, stopping their walk and taking Sonic gently by the arm, “We’re going to be spending a lot of time together this month, so I insist. You can relax on the formalities, just like the others.”

“Are you sure?”

“Of course, Sonic.” Amy released his arm, letting her hand slide down it, never quite breaking contact. The two stood, facing each other in the quiet street. Amy did not look him in the eye, instead opting to stare down at his hand, which was now cradled gently in Amy’s. “I know we’ve had a… rocky start. I want to apologize, try to mend things.”

“There is nothing to mend,” Sonic said, and when Amy finally looked up at him he wore an all-too-charming smile, “I can’t pretend to understand your situation, but I do understand that you’ve been frustrated and need a way to vent.”

“You’re too forgiving,” Amy sighed, chuckling softly. She broke contact with Sonic and the two of them continued walking down the street towards the center of town.

“There’s no such thing as too forgiving, Amy.”

There was something about the way her name sounded on his tongue that made her heart stop. She nearly tripped over her own foot and fell, but was able to catch herself quickly, before Sonic could even notice what had happened.

The two of them came to a stop at the oasis. Amy knelt in the sand just beside the waters. Oh, how she wanted to peel her gloves off and dip her hands into the water, but she restrained herself.

“This is my favorite part of Sol,” Amy said. “It’s like the heart of the kingdom. It’s so bright, and cheery, and _blue_.”

She cast a glance over her shoulder at Sonic. He, too, stood out within the walls of Sol, his vibrant cobalt fur matching the oasis in its vibrance. Sonic stood a few paces away from the edge of the water, though it wasn’t his usual ‘I’m on duty and keeping my distance’ type of behavior. He was clearly relaxed, a hand on his hip as he, too, gazed out at the oasis.

“Certainly,” He replied, “Not too common to see water this clear.”

After a few hours of walking around the markets, the two of them found Knuckles and Tails while getting some street food. Amy had never had street food before, having grown up with professional cooks within the castle, so she had to admit she was curious.

“Well, well, well,” The Captain’s voice rang out through the crowd, “Look who’s finally got his armor off! Did you get fired?”

“Ha! You wish. Ya can’t get rid of me that easily, Knux,” Sonic countered.

“One of these days,” Knuckles muttered.

Tails’ face lit up when he saw that Sonic wasn’t on active duty, and he flashed Amy a big smile. Amy simply rolled her eyes and tried (but failed) to stifle her own smile.

“We were just gonna grab some food,” Sonic said, “You guys in?”

“You bet!” Tails exclaimed.

Later that evening, as the sun vanished from the sky and the frigid cold of desert nights began to set in, Amy met up with Blaze on a balcony, sitting at a small imported wood table with freshly-brewed tea. Sonic stood at the doorway, still not in his armor, but wearing a black jacket. It was worn down and patched in places after what was certain to be years of wear.

“How have you been?” Amy asked the Queen.

“Pretty good,” She said between sips of her tea. “all things considered. Sol hasn’t been hit too hard by the Robotnik Empire quite yet.”

“Holding out hope for you that it stays that way,” Amy said with a sigh. “Mobius is swamped. Attacks nearly every week.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry,” Blaze said. “Trade’s been suffering because of it, but I didn’t realize it was that bad. If you need any help, please don’t hesitate to reach out.”

“Thank you,” Amy said. She shivered—the cold that nightfall brought was an intense relief from the daily heat, though after a while would certainly become uncomfortable. She had her own overcoat on, a soft red with white fur trim, matching her dress.

“What of your father?” Blaze asked. “Still having troubles with him?”

“Oh, don’t get me started,” Amy said with a roll of her eyes. “He’s been pressuring me to marry. I know I’ll have to do it eventually, but it’s driving me up the wall. He keeps threatening to arrange something.”

“Oh, dear,” Blaze said. “And the arrangement is unfavorable?”

“Certainly. A duke I spend time with on occasion. Friends, sure, but a marriage? I could never marry someone I didn’t love.”

Blaze did not respond right away. She appeared to be deep in thought. Amy took another sip of her tea, relishing the warmth of the mug in her hands.

“You’re thinking of someone,” Blaze mused. “I can see it in your face. You speak of love, and there’s a name floating in the back of your mind, unspoken.”

“I—N-no, no. There’s nobody.”

“Amy,” Blaze pressed.

“It would never work out, Blaze. It’s not worth the effort.”

“You’re the Princess of Mobius. You can get anything you want.”

“Not him.”

“What’s he like?”

“He’s… brave, and strong. Loyal.” She sighed. “Selfless, almost to a fault.”

“Why can’t it work? Is he a peasant?”

“No, not a peasant.”

“Well, if a few past kings and queens have loved peasants, there’s no reason you can’t marry someone higher.”

Amy sighed and adjusted the sleeves of her overcoat. A soft breeze ruffled her pink quills and she shivered again. Staring out over the edge of the balcony, she stared out into the castle’s courtyard, a fountain of water bubbling in the center of a cobbled stone walkway. 

Suddenly, she felt something warm over her shoulders, and she glanced up to find Sonic there, draping his own jacket over her.

“I’m okay, really,” Amy said. “Keep your jacket.”

“Nonsense, Your Highness,” Sonic said, “You’re shivering. I insist.”

“You’ll get cold,” she replied with a frown. “You could get sick.”

“Your comfort and health is more important than my own,” Sonic said, before bowing and returning to his post at the doorway.

“Ugh, knights,” Amy muttered, mostly jokingly, and with a roll of her eyes she pulled her arms through the sleeves of Sonic’s jacket. It was slightly large on her, which meant it fit just perfectly overtop her coat. She tried not to dwell too much on how the jacket smelled like him, or how it still ever so slightly carried the warmth of his own body.

She glanced up at Blaze, who wore a smile on her face.


	7. KINGDOM SOL: Act 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's MY fanfic, *I* get to choose the arm color

When Amy fell, she fell hard and fast.

As grateful as she was to be back in a comfortable bed, she tossed and turned, finding she couldn’t quite fall asleep. The culprit of her restlessness stood just on the other side of the door, standing guard in full armor, having insisted on taking up his usual duty as well as refusing to sleep in the same room as the Princess to give her privacy. 

She couldn’t stop thinking about him, about his hands on her waist during their travels, the way she held his hand in her own out in the streets. His hands, his hands… Why was he so fixated on his hands? Oh, how she craved to take those gauntlets off and feel his fur against hers; the removal of gloves was a greatly intimate gesture among her kind, and she could feel herself blushing madly at the thought. (Though, she did find it intriguing that his gauntlets cut off halfway up his finger, exposing the blue fur and peach-colored pads at his fingertips. Such a glove was considered risqué by most, though he certainly didn’t have that type of personality. For practicality, maybe?)

And when she finally fell asleep, she dreamt of him; his dashing smile, her name spoken in his voice, the way he moved. Quick, light on his feet, free. She snapped awake again and groaned. Easing up on him was a mistake.

She was a _Princess_ , she told herself. He was just a _knight_. 

It seemed like it took forever for morning to roll around, and when it did, she begrudgingly got up and tried her best to smooth out her quills, which were a disaster due to a night of restlessness. She didn’t have to get super dolled up for her conversation with Blaze, but she wanted to get rid of any evidence that she had been awake most of the night. That included a basic pass of makeup and attention to her fur and quills. Once she figured she was ready enough, she headed out of the bedroom and towards her destination: Sol Castle’s meeting room. Sonic, she noted, was not posted at her doorway like she’d thought he was, and it wasn’t until she was halfway to the meeting that he showed his face.

“Your Highness!” Amy heard Sonic’s voice call out to her as she made her way down the hall. She turned her head and watched as he jogged to catch up to her, carrying something small in his hands. He wasn’t wearing the dayclothes that he had worn yesterday, instead opting for his chainmail.

“Have you had breakfast?” He asked once he reached her side. 

“Not yet,” Amy replied.

“Well, here, I got you this,” He said, holding out a breakfast pastry wrapped in a napkin.

“Oh,” Amy breathed, meeting his emerald green eyes. She reached out and took the pastry from his hands. “Th-thank you.” 

Amy ate as she walked. It was sweet; an airy pastry surrounded strawberry jam filling. She wondered where he had gotten it; if she were to guess, based off what she gathered about him, he likely ran out and made a stop at one of the street vendors rather than getting castle food. 

Sonic stopped Amy just before the door to the meeting room.

“Hold on,” He said, taking the napkin from Amy’s hands. He cradled Amy’s chin in his free hand and wiped away a bit of jam off her face with the napkin.

Amy stared up at him as he pulled away.

“I—I could’ve,” Amy said, once she remembered how to form words, “done that myself.”

He chuckled. “And what, smeared it all over your face? I don’t think that would be a good impression for the Queen.”

Amy glared indignantly at him, then turned on her heels and walked into the meeting room, joining Blaze at the table in the center of the room. Sonic remained at the doorway.

“This shouldn’t take too long,” Amy said to Blaze as she took her seat, “I mentioned last night that we’ve been dealing with Robotnik. We’ve… been able to stave his attacks off, thanks to our army, but we worry that it won’t be much longer before we’re overrun.”

“You wish for our help,” Blaze inferred.

“Yes,” Amy said. “My father tasked me with visiting each of our neighbors. We’re holding an alliance meeting upon the next full moon, with hopes of gathering our collective troops and stopping Robotnik once and for all.”

“I will be there,” Blaze said. “I’ll gladly help a friend.”

“Thank you,” Amy said. She knew inviting Blaze would be the easiest of the three Kingdoms. “I… have one more question for you,”

“Anything.”

“Have you… have you heard any tell of the Wind Spirit in your domain?”

“The Wind Spirit was to be reborn in your kingdom, following the cycle,” Blaze said. “I have seen no one show signs here.”

Amy sighed. “I figured as much.”

“You still have had no sign of Her presence,” Blaze muttered. “This is troubling.”

“Indeed. Many Mobians believe the Wind Spirit to be dead, the cycle broken. My father made me announce such during our most recent war council, but I… I have to believe Her incarnate is still out there, somewhere.”

Blaze nodded. “I will keep an eye out,” She said.

“Thank you.” Amy said, standing from her seat. “I look forward to seeing you at the meeting, Blaze. It’s been a pleasure visiting, but I’m afraid I cannot stay longer.”

Blaze stood as well, walked around the table, and hugged Amy. When they pulled away, Blaze smiled and nodded her head.

“Safe travels,” She said. “Where are you headed next?”

“Apotos.”

“Feel free to take any food and supplies for your travels. That’s a long way from here.”

“Thank you, Blaze. I appreciate your hospitality greatly.”

Amy offered Blaze a curtsy then stepped out of the room. Sonic was standing at attention off to the side of the door, his sword drawn and the tip of the blade planted on the ground in front of him, both hands on the hilt. This, Amy had been told by her father once, was a particular attention stance used during important meetings; the drawn sword an unspoken threat that anybody who dared to impede on official business would meet their fates upon the blade.

“At ease,” Amy said, and Sonic sheathed his sword at his hip. 

“How did it go?” He asked.

“Very well,” Amy replied. “Go gather Knuckles and Tails, tell them to pack up. I want to get as much headway on travels as we can this morning.”

Sonic nodded and hurried off.

By midmorning, their horses were loaded with their belongings, their food had been freshly stocked, courtesy of Blaze. Sonic climbed upon one of the horses with Tails just behind him, so Amy joined Knuckles on the other horse. By Amy’s calculations, they could afford to take about a week to travel to Apotos, and hopefully not any longer as they’d need the next two weeks to make it to the final kingdom and then back home in time for the alliance meeting. 

“Sonic,” Tails said after a while of travel. The group had exited the desert at this point, returning northward to the grasslands before turning and heading east. A large forest loomed upon the horizon; deep within that forest lived the Kingdom of Apotos.

Sonic hummed in response. Presently, he was sitting with his hands loosely on the horse’s reigns, gazing upwards. It was coming to be evening now, and the skies were a pleasant shade of blue, scattered with soft, puffy clouds.

“I’m going to attune your biosignature to this,” Tails went on, fiddling with the device he had brought along with him on their journey. “As a test, to make sure it works.”

“Sure, buddy,” Sonic said, though it was clear he wasn’t paying attention to a word that Tails had said. Amy giggled softly.

“Finding a way to register the Wind Spirit to this is a whole other issue, but maybe if I…” Tails mumbled to himself as he got back to work.

As opposed to most other times she’d seen him, all the tension seemed to have left Sonic’s body as he just sort of drifted along. She wondered what was on his mind; but judging by the serene look on his face as he gazed up at the clouds, the way his body swayed gently in the breeze, she figured it was probably nothing at all.

_Chaos,_ She caught herself thinking, _He’s so handsome._

Why? Why did she have to feel this way about a mere knight? He was nothing special; Her father would kill her on sight if he found out.

Ugh, but he _wasn’t_ “nothing special.” There was something about him, something she couldn’t quite place, that made him feel important.

“Alright, firing this thing up,” Tails said about twenty minutes later.

Tails flicked a switch on the side of his device, and in the now-fading evening light, the screen illuminated the fox’s face. Immediately the device began beeping, a shrill sound that made everybody reach up and cover their ears. Poor Sonic, who still hadn’t been paying any particular attention, had spooked so suddenly by the sound that he lost his balance and fell off the horse entirely.

“Alright, alright!” Knuckles yelled overtop the sound, “It works! Turn it off already!”

Tails fumbled for the power switch for a moment before finally turning it off, and everybody breathed a sigh of relief. Sonic hopped back up onto the horse; they hadn’t been moving particularly fast so it didn’t take much for him to catch up after he fell. He hadn’t gotten trampled, which was a relief, and his armor protected him from getting too scuffed up from the fall. He settled upon the saddle, his quills on end, eyes narrowed, ears flat against his head. A stiff breeze that seemed to mirror Sonic’s unease ruffled Amy’s quills, and she wondered if, somehow, the Wind Spirit was watching over them, disapproving.

Just to be safe, she closed her eyes and offered the Wind Spirit an apologetic prayer on Tails’ behalf.

“Next step,” Tails said, “Fix the volume on this thing.”


	8. KINGDOM APOTOS: Act 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> content warning for injury/blood in this one!

Day faded to night, then back to day, then to night again; the days blended into each other until they reached the edge of the forest. By Amy’s estimate, they were a little over halfway there. A large portion of the journey would be through these woods, as Apotos was nestled deep within. Just to the north of the forest lay Misty Lake; a beautiful place that Amy had visited twice in her life. Fog settled over the lake, creating a very mythical feeling that Amy loved. She couldn’t help it, she was always drawn to water, it made her feel at peace.

For now, though, they’d skip Misty Lake.

The forest was dense and hard to navigate. It was certainly the worst part of the journey to Apotos, she always dreaded it. The humidity of the jungle was worse than the dry heat of the desert in ways; unrelenting, sticky, and unpleasant. They had to slow their pace in order to keep the horses from tripping over errant vines and branches, though they were slightly ahead of schedule so there was no cause for concern.

“Hey, Tails,” Sonic said at one point, and Amy couldn’t remember exactly when this conversation had taken place: was it the third day or the fourth day of their travels? Everything blended together into a weary, exhausted haze.

“What if you’re the Wind Spirit?”

Tails’ head shot up from his project he was tinkering with on the back of the horse, looking at Sonic with an extremely shocked and baffled expression.

“I’m not the Wind Spirit,” Tails said with a nervous laugh. 

“Dude, you can _fly._ Foxes don’t normally fly.”

“That’s just utilizing physics. Sonic, if I were, I think I would know.”

“Okay, okay,” Sonic said “Just spitballing ideas. Wouldn’t it be funny?”

“Funny?”

“If She lived within one of us, and we were searching for Her presence, not realizing She’s been here all along.”

By the fifth day of their travel, Amy concluded that they were nearly there. Rolling her map onto a fallen tree trunk during a meal break, she charted how far they’d come. Perhaps not more than a half day’s travel before they arrived. She was relieved; all this time on the road had certainly left her desperate for a soft bed and a proper bath.

Of course, the universe did not want to work in her favor. 

As she rolled up the map and tucked it into her bag upon the saddle of one of the horses, a loud explosion rang out, causing a nearby tree to fall to the ground. The resulting fire from the explosion began to spread, and the horses, thoroughly spooked, took off. Amy gasped, her first instinct to reach out and try to stop the horses, but it wasn’t long before they vanished into the dense trees.

“What are badniks doing all the way out here?” Amy yelled as she whirled around, deciding the horses’ disappearance (and, subsequently, the disappearance of all their belongings) was the least of their concerns at the moment. She grabbed her hammer, thankful that she always carried it on her person, and readied herself to attack.

“I think they’re scouts,” Knuckles replied. But that still didn’t make any sense; Robotnik’s territory was out west, and Apotos was the kingdom farthest east.

“We need to make sure they all get destroyed,” Tails called out, his back facing the others as he faced off against one of the badniks. “We can’t have them bringing whatever information they were collecting back to Eggman!”

“Well,” Sonic said confidently, cracking his knuckles and wearing a cocky smile, “There’s nothing I love more than busting bots.”

There were four of them: an even match. Amy made quick work of her opponent, slamming her hammer down so hard that she crushed the badnik’s metal casing in one swing. A few paces away, Knuckles let out a low, impressed whistle.

“Remind me to train with you sometime,” He remarked.

“Help!” Tails yelled. One of the badniks was trying to escape; and Tails had begun to pursue it. Amy gestured for Knuckles to go assist Tails in the pursuit. She could take care of the badnik Knuckles had been fighting, no problem. And so, Knuckles broke into a run, and the oldest and youngest of the group vanished into the trees in pursuit of the errant machine.

Amy glanced over at Sonic. He was awfully close to the edge of a steep cliff, though he did not seem worried. If anything, he seemed to thrive in the peril of it all, the adrenaline rush of walking the line, just in the reach of danger but staying in perfect control.

Amy turned her attention back to the badnik she was engaged in a tango with, dodging swiftly as it fired what appeared to be some sort of jet-propelled bomb unlike anything she’d ever seen before. When the bomb impacted with a nearby tree, it exploded, sending splinters of wood flying in every direction. She didn’t want to think of what that would do if it hit a living being.

She shuddered. All the more reason to destroy this thing. With a swing of her hammer, she bashed the metal being’s side in, and it collapsed to a heap on the ground, mangled and dented.

Amy breathed out a sigh, nudging the robot’s remains with her foot. These things creeped her out, a technology beyond anything anybody had ever seen. No artificial construct should be able to move and act upon its own accord. This Robotnik guy was a genius, but incredibly dangerous, man.

She didn’t have time to think much on it, as one badnik still remained, cornering Sonic between itself and the edge of the cliff. He had nowhere to go. Amy watched in horror as the badnik raised its arm out, ready to shoot one of those rockets point blank at her appointed knight. A shot like that would kill him instantly, and certainly he knew that, but all the while he smiled.

Before she could think through what she was doing, she ran forward, smacking the badnik off to the side with her hammer. The rocket was fired, though aimed incorrectly, but that was enough for Amy as her momentum carried her directly into Sonic, sending both of them tumbling down the cliffside.

There were three distinct things Amy realized in quick succession when she and Sonic hit the ground at the bottom of the cliff.

Number one: The cliff was full of rocks, vines, and twigs. She had gotten quite scratched up; but when the two of them finally rolled to a stop at the bottom, Amy landing atop of Sonic, the first thing she saw was the damage the fall had done to her knight. He was fully unconscious, a bloody wound on his head beginning to stain his fur red, and his armor was dented and marred, some pieces likely rendered unusable. He had been the cushion between her and the unforgiving ground.

Number two: When the rocket fired, it had detonated just off to the side of a nearby tree, severing it from its roots and sending it toppling down the cliff just behind them.

Number three: The badnik wasn’t destroyed, and would certainly run off. With Tails and Knuckles gone, they wouldn’t be able to stop it. 

And they wouldn’t be able to find her and Sonic.

“Sonic,” Amy whispered urgently, “Sonic, wake up!”

Amy glanced up at the tree tumbling down the cliff towards them, then back down at Sonic, who remained unresponsive. With no time to lose, she quickly scooped the knight up in her arms and ran; not far, just a ways off to the side to allow the tree to complete its fall without crushing the both of them.

When the danger had passed, Amy laid her knight down against the base of the cliff, gently cupping a hand around his face. She had no way of patching him up, as their first-aid supplies had been tied to one of their horses, now long gone. With all of Sonic’s armor on, it was difficult to detect the rise and fall of his chest, so she held her free hand just below his nose and waited a moment. When a soft puff of air against her hand informed her that he was still breathing, she let out a relieved sigh.

“Knuckles?” Amy yelled, her voice reverberating through the forest. “Tails?”

When she received no reply, she tried again, and a third time after that, before giving up, settling down on her knees just beside Sonic. She leaned down and pressed her cheek against his chest, trying to soothe herself by the rhythm of his breathing, just barely detectable through the layer of damaged steel.

She had no idea what to do; she wondered if Sonic would, but he wasn’t going to be any help until he awoke. Should she try to find the others? Find the horses? Should she just plan to keep pressing forward towards the kingdom, meeting up with Knuckles and Tails once they arrived?

“Wake up,” She breathed, tears forming in her eyes, “Please. I can’t do this alone.”

She let out a quiet sob. This wasn’t supposed to happen. Things had been going so well.

A soft drip of water splashed upon her nose and she sat up. Through the dense canopy above her, she could just barely make out hints of angry gray clouds. Another drop hit her square on the head, then another, and another, until suddenly it was pouring. Amy whined; just when she thought it couldn’t get much worse…

 _Keep it together,_ She told herself, taking a deep breath. _For Sonic. One thing at a time._

She needed to find some sort of shelter from the rain. Somewhere not too far away from here, so they wouldn’t lose their way to Apotos (Amy was furious with herself for having put the map back onto the horse earlier). She couldn’t abandon Sonic while she searched, though, but with all the armor he’d be too heavy to carry for any long span of time.

Well, it was pretty damaged, anyways. She could get him a new set back in Mobius. She pulled the armor off of him, tossing each piece into a pile off to the side. The abandoned armor could serve as a landmark, too, either for herself or for Knuckles and Tails, who would undoubtedly try to look for them.

_This was where we fell._

Armor discarded, she gently gathered Sonic up in her arms, wincing when the movement elicited a soft groan from him, and walked along the cliffside. It wasn’t too long before she found a small cave that could serve as a roof over their heads, and she settled down there. She laid Sonic down further in to keep him safe and as dry as she could, then opted to sit just at the cave’s opening. She stared out at the pouring rain. There was a bright flash and a few moments later thunder rumbled, and in any other circumstance she would have found this soothing.

She wasn’t sure how long she’d sat there for, but she figured waiting out the rain would be the best move for the time being and hope the others would find them.

But the two of them were already displaced from where their last point of contact had been. Down a cliff and a short ways… um… in a direction. She was pretty sure she’d been walking in the same direction the group had been headed before the ambush, so… east?

“Amy?” She snapped out of her thoughts and turned her attention to the source of the barely audible voice. Sonic, dazed and disoriented, was trying to sit up from where he lay.

“Hey, hey,” Amy whispered, hurrying over to Sonic, helping him up into a sitting position and gently stroking her fingers through his quills. “I’m here.”

“Are you okay?” He asked, and Amy wanted to laugh at the absurdity of it all.

“Me?” Amy replied, keeping her voice soft, soothing, and gentle, “You’re the one who got hurt.”

“Mmm,” Sonic hummed, leaning into her for support, “It’s alright, as long as you’re safe.”

He was completely, utterly ridiculous. 

“Are you?” He asked again, his voice not much more than a whisper.

“Yes,” Amy said with a sigh, wrapping an arm around Sonic’s shoulders. “I’m okay.”

“You’re not lying?”

Amy let herself laugh. And, in the heat of the moment, the fear and worry intensifying her emotions, she impulsively leaned in and kissed him. 

It was far from an ideal kiss; he was dazed and injured, her hands were shaking from the stress. They were stranded in the middle of the forest in a rainstorm, caked with mud and, in Sonic’s case, blood. This definitely wasn’t anything like her idea of what a first kiss would be like. She’d always pictured a romantic evening picnic, lit by the moon, surrounded by flowers and a cool, but comfortable, breeze.

But it was nice, she gathered, as his hands found her waist. Her worries melted away as she focused on the here and now. The sound of rain pattering against the rock above their heads, the low rumble of thunder, Sonic’s presence so close to her as she pressed him gently against the edge of the cliff they had settled under, a soft purr rumbling deep in his chest.

“Your Highness,” He whispered as she pulled away. He looked exhausted; his eyes half-closed, blood matted in his fur. “This is wrong.”

“Nonsense,” Amy said, entwining her fingers in his.

“I’m just a knight,” He muttered, his head lolling back, hitting the cave wall with a soft thunk. He winced, and Amy felt a pang of sadness. She wondered just how much pain he was in, how much he was trying to hide it.

“You’re my knight,” Amy whispered sweetly.

“I’m no royalty. S…” he groaned softly, squeezing his eyes shut. “Spent the… first half ‘a my life in the woods.”

“The woods?” That made no sense. Knuckles and Tails said they’d grown up together on the streets.

“B’fore Knux n’ Tails found me,” he said, his speech starting to slur more as his consciousness began to drift away. He was trying so hard to stay awake, Amy could tell. He needed to rest, so she didn’t respond; this wasn’t a conversation for right now, anyways. She pressed a kiss against his cheek and held him close as he drifted off once more.

As the storm began to let up, she made a decision. She wouldn’t try to head for Apotos, nor would she try to search for Knuckles and Tails. Sonic was in no condition to travel as they were. For now, she would stay put and hope, pray, for rescue.


	9. KINGDOM APOTOS: Act 2

Amy wasn’t quite sure when she’d drifted asleep.

“…likely that they tried to find shelter from the rain. They can’t be too far from where the discarded armor was…”

A voice drifted into her ears as she groggily opened her eyes. She didn’t register it right away, as she blinked a couple times to wake herself up. After a moment, gathering her surroundings, she remembered where she was; outside the cave dusk had fallen and light was fading fast, but at least the rain had ceased at some point during her nap.

“…no idea what condition they’ll be in when we find…” 

The voice, though quiet and far away, finally registered in her brain, and she gasped.

“Tails?” She yelled out, as loud as she could. If she could hear his voice at a normal speaking volume, there was no doubt that he would be able to hear her if she yelled.

A moment passed.

“Your Highness?” Tails’ voice called back. “Where are you?” 

“A cave,” Amy called back, “Along the cliffside!”

It wasn’t long before torchlight cascaded into the cave, illuminating Amy and revealing the worried, frantic faces of Knuckles and Tails as they appeared at the opening. The torch, as it turned out, was just a tree branch they’d managed to light aflame, as they didn’t have any actual torches to use. Creative. 

She was certain it was quite the sight for the two of them; Amy, curled up on the rocky ground with her back against the wall, holding Sonic tight to her body as if his life depended on it.

Sonic was still asleep; she wasn’t surprised. Amy knew deep down he’d be fine, as resilient and strong as he was. Though she still worried. She didn’t entirely know to what extent he was injured.

“We were looking everywhere for you,” Tails said as he and Knuckles rushed over to them. “Are you okay?”

“I’m exhausted and sore, but injured? No. Nothing more than a few scrapes…” Amy said. “We rolled down the cliff. Sonic took the brunt of it, but I think he’ll be okay.” She glanced at Sonic, whose eyes were fluttering open; unfocused and tired. Gently brushing her thumb across his cheek, she asked, “Are you okay?”

“I’m great,” Sonic replied, pushing himself up to a sitting position with a lazy smile on his face. “Heya, Knux. Tails.”

Amy rolled her eyes.

“We’ll get you two to a doctor as soon as we get to Apotos,” Knuckles said, and Amy stared at him incredulously.

“I’m not injured,” She said back, “Just Sonic needs—”

“No, Your Highness.” Knuckles interrupted rather forcefully. “I expect you to get looked at, too. You may not be injured, but you certainly look worse for wear.”

If it had been any other circumstance, Amy would have given Knuckles an earful about interrupting a Princess like that. She’d lightened up on them as far as formalities were concerned, but some things still crossed that line.

“Okay,” Amy resigned, softly, frankly too exhausted to put up a fight, “But Sonic first.”

Sonic jumped up to his feet suddenly, his sudden burst of energy catching Amy by surprise. “Well, that settles it,” He declared, “We should get moving, so Her Highness can get a doctor.”

“Sonic,” Tails said, “In the morning.”

Sonic stared at Tails.

“Dude.” Tails was trying his best to keep from laughing. “It’s nighttime?”

Sonic’s attention turned to the opening of the cave, the pitch black beyond.

“…Huh.”

That did it for Tails, and it wasn’t long before the fox was rolling on the ground in tears from laughing so hard. The laughter was contagious, a relief of stress after a long day, and soon Knuckles and Amy were laughing too, leaving Sonic standing there, dumbfounded.

“Sorry,” he said with a soft chuckle of his own, once everything died down, “Guess I hit my head kinda hard, yeah?”

“Yeah,” Amy said with a residual giggle, realizing it was probably bad to make fun of the fogginess and disorientation that stemmed from his injury. She reached up and took Sonic by the hand, gently urging him to sit back down. “We’ll rest, for now. Get a head-start early in the morning, and hopefully we’ll be at the Kingdom by late afternoon.”

“I can take a watch,” Sonic offered as he settled back down on the rocky ground beside his companions.

“We’d be better off asking a chao to take a watch shift,” Knuckles grumbled. “Tails, me, then the Princess.”

And so, Amy settled down to sleep. How she had so easily slipped off into sleep earlier had been a mystery, for lying on the rocky ground was nowhere near pleasant. Oh, how she yearned for her bedroll; for Sonic’s nightly generosity of giving up his own bedroll to stack underneath hers, for the sake of the Princess’s comfort. 

But now, she mused as she stared up at the darkness that loomed above her, if they’d had their supplies, it would be Sonic who would need the bedrolls the most.

She couldn’t help it. She cuddled up close to Sonic, finding solace in the soft fur on the side of his face against her cheek; the steady breathing, the heartbeat, lingering memories of the kiss that Sonic had not rejected, but hadn’t quite accepted either... Whether he was still awake or not she was unsure, but that didn’t deter her from wrapping her arms gently around him and letting his presence lull her to sleep.

She awoke in the early hours of the morning, long before the sun had risen, to Knuckles shaking her shoulder. She sat up, her whole body stiff, and her watch shift began. At this point, she’d done a few watches and was getting better adjusted to how it worked. Honestly, it was a lot of sitting around and listening through the darkness, gripping her hammer, hoping nothing tried to ambush them in their sleep.

And luckily, nothing did. Not feral wolves nor badniks disturbed their night and for that she was thankful; they’d certainly all dealt with enough drama as it were. When the sun began casting light into their shelter, she nudged her companions awake and the four of them were on their way.

They traveled slowly, slower than she’d anticipated thanks to Sonic. He was limping with what he insisted was a very minor sprain, nothing to worry about; but that plus the dizziness and fatigue that came with a head wound left him leaning on Knuckles’ left shoulder for support. All the while, he insisted he was perfectly fine, that stubborn idiot, and that he didn’t need to stop and rest at all.

On the bright side, at least he was slowly starting to act more like himself again.

“Knuckles,” Sonic said; he’d been quite the chatterbox all afternoon. He was trying to keep the mood light. “You remember the day I got my new job?”

“Uh, yeah?” Knuckles replied, shooting Sonic a rather confused look.

“You committed the vilest of crimes that day,” Sonic growled, and it was treading a very delicate line of both joking but also completely serious.

“What did I do?” Knuckles asked, then turned to Tails and whispered, “Do you know what I did?”

Tails shrugged.

“Let me recount for you, Knux,” Sonic began, “It was a normal morning: a cool, refreshing breeze, the sun rising, birds chirping, the Princess in the stands watching our every move…”

“And you were camped out on the bench, you lazy piece of shit. I pulled you out to train, you were making a bad first impression.”

“A bad first impression that landed me the job,” Sonic said with a snicker. “Anyways, you missed the important part.”

“You had a chili dog,” Amy said, vividly remembering Sonic’s comically distressed expression when the chili dog had slipped out of his hands, “He knocked it to the ground.”

“Hah! _Someone_ gets it!”

“Why do you remember that?” Tails asked.

“Oh,” Amy said with a small chuckle, “I thought his distress over gross commoner food was priceless.”

“Gross??” Sonic exclaimed.

“Okay,” Knuckles drawled, “So you lost a chili dog. I’ll buy you one to make up for it.”

“Ah-ah-ah! Not so fast, buddy. I charge interest.”

Knuckles stared at him for a moment with wide eyes. Silence hung in the air for a moment, Sonic grinning at Knuckles with that same characteristic confidence she’d seen just before they tumbled down the cliff. In the moment, the arm Sonic had slung around Knuckles’ shoulder at the beginning of their travels looked like a playful gesture rather than a point of physical support.

Knuckles whipped his head around to Tails, who was walking at Knuckles’ right, just a few paces away.

“ _When_ did you teach him about the concept of _interest?!?_ ” 

Tails hollered in laughter, doubling over and clutching his stomach as he walked. 

“Dude,” He said when he finally calmed down enough, between laughing breaths, “For this exact purpose.”

Knuckles groaned and punched Tails in the shoulder, not hard enough to injure but certainly hard enough to inflict mild pain, as he yelped softly and quickly reached up to clutch the affected shoulder.

“Did you three never get proper schooling?” Amy asked out of the blue; she had never wanted to pry on their past, but the thought made it past her lips before she could filter it out.

“Sonic and I didn’t,” Knuckles said. “I did as much as I possibly could to get, and keep, Tails in school as long as possible. He had to drop out when we took Sonic in, as he… presented some unique challenges. But by that point Tails had already far exceeded the classroom.”

“How… If you don’t mind me asking, how did you end up on the streets?” Amy asked softly.

“I was bullied to the point of running away from home,” Tails said sadly. “I had a home, but hated my family. So when I was six, I ran away. Never looked back, and I’m better off for it.”

“My family was killed,” Knuckles said. “I had a roof over my head, a little sister, Tikal, that I loved dearly, and I lost it all.”

“Oh,” Amy breathed, “I’m so sorry.”

She looked over at Sonic, who was gazing up at the foliage in the trees above them. For a moment, she wondered if he simply wasn’t paying attention, or perhaps he didn’t want to talk about it… Was this too personal a conversation for him?

But then, he glanced over at Amy and shrugged. “Idunno.”

“You… don’t know?”

“We think I was abandoned at birth,” Sonic explained. “I held my own out in the woods just to the west of Mobius until what we guess is around fifteen years…? Right?”

“I was fifteen,” Knuckles said, “Tails was… seven.”

“Fourteen or so years, then. We think Sonic’s marginally younger than Knuckles,” Tails said, “He’d never even so much as met another person until we came along. He was skittish, distrustful… I had to drop out of school to help him, because let me tell you, it’s not easy for an eight- and fifteen-year-old to teach someone to communicate far past the age of natural language acquisition.”

Amy had no idea how to respond. So she let it sit in silence for a few minutes, gazing over at Sonic. She felt a pang of sadness. 

Why would someone ever want to abandon what Amy was certain to be the kindest soul in Mobius?

“Do you ever wonder who your family is?” Amy finally asked.

“I know who my family is,” Sonic said simply, gesturing with his free arm to Tails and Knuckles, “They’re right here.”

They arrived in Apotos by evening. She had been hoping for afternoon, but at the pace they were doing, and their horses gone… she was honestly just glad she’d made it there in one piece. Apotos was a wonderful place, and Amy wish she were in a better condition to appreciate it more. The streets were paved with cobblestone and white mortar, and were lined with regal blue-painted fences; and the buildings were all built out of a striking white brick. They were surrounded by arches, domed rooves, and the occasional tower that housed a bright golden bell that, Amy learned from her few stays here with her father, rang on the hour.

Their first destination was a local doctor’s office; the doctor Amy met with proclaimed her uninjured but gave her a few salves for her various minor cuts and scrapes. Sonic took a bit longer, but eventually was brought out with a bandage wrapped around his head and his ankle. Aside from the cut on his temple that required a few stitches, the confirmed concussion, and the sprained ankle, he was in good health and set for a quick recovery.

On their way through town after visiting the doctor, Amy stopped by a local tailor to buy some fresh clothes to last her the rest of her trip. She opted for a simple, practical dress somewhat similar to the style she’d been wearing (before it got all muddy and tattered, at least). It was a soft shade of sky blue; while she preferred to wear red, blue was her favorite color, so she was happy with it. Along with some brown boots, she also purchased big, fluffy jackets for each of her companions, as preparation for their last Kingdom visit up in the icy northern mountains. The jackets were each of their fur colors, respectively: she thought that would be cute.

For the time being, they found a small inn and got a room for the night; to wash up and get some much-needed rest. Everyone got themselves settled, and Amy took a short bath to clean out all the mud from her fur and quills. Once she deemed she was presentable enough, refreshed and happy to be in new clothes, she exited the washroom.

“That’s a nice color on you, Princess,” Sonic remarked, though he hadn’t even looked away from his current project of hanging a bedsheet across half of the room. He was balancing atop a stool, clothespin in one hand, bedsheet in the other as he attempted to find somewhere to clip the thing to.

“What are you doing?”

“Privacy shield,” Sonic replied, putting the clothespin between his teeth as he attempted to climb higher, trying to reach a fire safety pipe at the top of the wall. “since ‘e only haff one room.”

“Be careful,” Amy said nervously as he wobbled on his tiptoes atop the stool. “You’re the last person I want falling and hurting yourself… Again.”

“Yes, Your Highness,” Sonic replied after he made purchase on the pipe, whipping the clothespin out of his mouth and quickly finding a spot to clip it to.

Tails, on the other side of the room, hovered in the air with the help of his rapidly-spinning tails, and secured the sheet to the opposite pipe with ease. Why Tails didn’t do both sides remained a mystery to Amy; likely because Sonic was itching to do _something._

“The side with the bed is yours,” Tails said to Amy.

“And what about you three?”

“Whoever wins the fight over the couch will sleep there,” Tails chuckled, “The others will sleep on the floor.”

“Well, I’m making an executive decision, as your Princess,” Amy said, putting her hands on her hips. “Sonic, you sleep on the couch.”

“Yes, Your Highness,” Sonic affirmed. Where was all this formality coming from? She couldn’t help but notice he was slipping back into old habits. Why?

Was it because of the kiss?

“Sounds like someone’s playing favorites,” Knuckles teased from wherever he was on the other side of the hanging blanket. 

Amy scoffed. “Well, if either of you have head injuries I should know about…”

“Point taken.”


	10. KINGDOM APOTOS: Act 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> for the duration of these meetings, it sure seems like just sending a letter WOULD be easier, huh?

“Stay here and rest, Sonic,” Amy said in the morning. Sonic had been more than eager to get out of the cramped room and head to Apotos Castle, but Amy gently pushed him from the door, where he tapped his foot anxiously, over to the bed and made him lay down. He was clearly not happy about that; it was kind of cute, the way he frowned indignantly, bundled up in the bedsheets.

“That’s an order.” She added, resulting in a quiet ‘yes, Your Highness,’ from her knight.

Amy, Knuckles, and Tails headed out of the inn and through town as a bell towers chimed nine times to indicate the morning hour. It was a long walk to the castle, and while the temperature was hot, the humidity was down so the weather was relatively tolerable. The air was stagnant, not a single breeze to cool them off at all, which Amy felt to be a mild bummer.

“Amy Rose,” The Princess stated at the gates to Apotos Castle when they arrived, “Princess of Mobius. I’m here to speak with the Queen.”

Just like in Sol, the guard at the gates led her, Knuckles, and Tails to the castle, which was obscured from view by trees, down a long, winding road. It was a solitary, quiet place. Peaceful. That’s what she always loved about Apotos, the soft chirping of birds, the vibrant green foliage, raindrops against windows, and the castle’s distance from the bustling town.

“Your Majesty,” Amy addressed as she was shown to the throne room. She curtsied respectfully to the tall rabbit who sat atop the throne, her young daughter playing with a chao off to the side. “Queen Vanilla. It’s an honor to see you once again.”

“Amy,” Queen Vanilla addressed fondly, “How you’ve grown since I last saw you.”

Amy giggled. “Yes,” She said, “I believe I was twelve on my last visit. I’m twenty-two, now.”

“How the time flies,” the Queen said, “What can I do for you, Amy?”

“I would like to ask something of you, if that’s okay,” Amy said softly. “Robotnik’s armies have been severely hurting Mobius. We’re putting together an alliance meeting, and we would be honored to have you in attendance.”

“Miss Rose,” Vanilla replied, “As much as I support you and your family, I’m afraid I will not attend.”

“You… won’t?” Amy faltered. The Queen crossed her legs upon her throne and gazed down at Amy, a soft but decisive expression on her face.

“I have worked hard to maintain the peace here in Apotos,” Vanilla explained, “I will not be a part of your war. I will not, in one fell swoop, destroy this peaceful kingdom I have built.”

“Oh,” Amy said, her voice wavering, “I… I understand.”

“Permission to speak, Your Highness?” Knuckles asked, and Amy glanced over at him in surprise.

“Granted,” Amy responded. 

“Your Majesty,” The Captain of Mobius’s Royal Guard began, “I worry that your peace will not last much longer, regardless. On our travel into your Kingdom, we were ambushed by Robotnik’s machines. What they were doing so far east I know not, but if he is already treading your territory, it cannot be long before he tries to strike.”

“I have seen no badniks in my territory,” Vanilla countered with a small frown.

“One of those badniks wounded one of my knights,” Amy said, though she was certainly twisting the truth a little. The badniks had not done any such damage, but rather it was Amy herself whose momentum caused them to fall. Sonic’s injury was, by all means, her own fault.

But Vanilla didn’t need to know that.

“A half day’s travel northwest,” Amy continued, “You will find the carcasses of these metal… creatures.”

Vanilla hummed thoughtfully. She took a minute to mull things over.

“I will send my best detectives,” She said, “And if they find such evidence of badniks in our territory, I will attend your alliance meeting. Otherwise, I shall not.”

“Thank you,” Amy smiled hopefully, “For your consideration, Your Majesty. I hope to see you there.”

“It’s intriguing that you’ve come in person for such a thing that a simple letter would suffice,” Vanilla commented.

“I figured it would be better to meet with every Royal personally.”

“So you can convince us to join your cause.”

“Well,” Amy chuckled, “Yes. But it was never you nor Queen Blaze that I worried about… It’s the Northern King who will surely cast the invitation aside without any conversation.”

“I see,” Vanilla mused. “Yes, the Kingdom of Ark is a cold place, its King’s heart even colder. I pray that you can get through to him; if you can get past his strict isolationist policies, he would be a formidable ally.”

“Indeed.”

On their way back from the castle, Amy spotted a decisively blue figure, chainmail glinting in the sunlight that filtered through the trees, sitting atop one of the taller bell towers, legs dangling over the edge.

“I’ll meet you two back at the inn,” Amy said. When Tails gave her a confused look, she simply pointed skyward.

“Ah,” Tails quipped, his voice laced with mild humor. “Looks like someone snuck out while we weren’t around.”

And so, Amy and her companions parted ways, and she headed for the bell tower. How had he gotten up there? It wasn’t long until she found a service ladder that led up to the bell; though he was atop the roof that sat above the bell that served as a point to suspend it. She climbed the ladder, and with some careful maneuvering she found herself upon the roof.

“You disobeyed my order,” Amy teased, and Sonic jumped slightly, startled by her presence. He glanced up at her where she stood just behind him, ears pointed backwards, flattened gently against his head.

“Sorry, Your Highness,” Sonic replied quietly. Amy sat down beside him.

“It’s okay,” Amy said, “I hear you don’t like being pent up in one place for long.”

He didn’t respond, gazing out at the kingdom below them. She sat down beside him.

“How come you’re all the way up here?” Amy asked, noticing how he tensed just slightly as she put an arm over his shoulder.

“I…” Sonic paused. “The air was so still on the ground. Up here, there’s at least a slight breeze now and then.”

“Interesting that you thought first of the air, and not of the beautiful view.”

Sonic chuckled softly at that.

“Sonic, I… wanted to talk to you,” Amy continued. “About, um, what happened a few days ago.”

Sonic simply looked at her quietly.

“You’ve been acting different since then, towards me. You’re slipping back into old formalities.”

“You’re the Princess,” Sonic said. “I have a duty to protect you. I… can’t l-let myself be distracted.”

“Did you enjoy it?” Amy asked. 

“Enjoy—”

“The kiss.”

“Yes,” Sonic said, though he sounded sad, “Very much so.”

“Why push away, then?”

Sonic didn’t respond immediately. He sat in silence for a while, and Amy considered pressing him further, though she could see him trying to find the right words for whatever he wanted to say. So, she waited, one hand still around his shoulder, gently massaging it, the other hand sitting comfortably in her lap.

“You should go for something better,” Sonic finally said, “A noble. Someone of better status, someone who… knows what they’re doing.”

“I have been forced to court many a noble by my father. None of them ever made me feel the way you do.”

“Your Highness…”

“I love you, Sonic,” Amy breathed. “You’re strong, brave, and handsome. I say screw whatever society thinks, what my father will surely think.”

“I don’t deserve this,” Sonic whispered. His emerald green eyes shimmered with an emotion Amy couldn’t quite place.

Amy’s heart sank. “Oh, Sonic, of course you do.” She pulled her arm off of his shoulder and pulled her legs up off the ledge, tucking them underneath her. “Tell me, what do you think of me?”

“Your safety is my priority,” He said quickly with a very blank, emotionless tone of voice.

“No, silly,” Amy said, “Honestly. From the bottom of your heart.”

“I… I’ve always respected you,” Sonic said, “You’re self-sufficient, you always try to do what you want without caring about what others think. You’re bold, but also beautiful, empathetic, and kind.”

Respect. Was that all it was? Had he returned her kiss simply because he felt it necessary as her appointed knight to comply? No, wait, he said he enjoyed it…

“I want to love you,” Sonic said, so quietly and nervously that she barely even heard it, “I just… Your Highness, I don’t know how.”

“You don’t know how?” Amy repeated. 

“I’ve only ever seen people,” Sonic said, clearly trying to be concise and calculated with his words, “courting. Holding hands, spending time together. I’ve never done such a thing myself.”

“There’s nothing wrong with that,” Amy said, “You don’t need to be afraid.”

And that was it was, Amy realized; that unreadable emotion in Sonic’s eyes, the tension in his shoulders, it was fear. 

“If you want to learn how,” Amy continued, “I’d be happy to show you.”

And with that, she stood, extending a hand to help Sonic up from his sitting position. The two of them descended the tower together, and when they later reached the inn they discovered Tails and Knuckles had gathered the supplies they’d need for their trek up the mountain. Food, climbing tools, and plenty of fire-lighting supplies. She wanted nothing more than to rest for another day (and for Sonic to rest for longer, as well; she was admittedly a bit frustrated that her concussed knight had taken it upon himself to climb the tallest bell tower in the kingdom instead of sleeping). However, she knew they were starting to fall behind schedule, and couldn’t afford to take another day of rest.

The four of them departed from Apotos, heading directly north until they reached Misty Lake.

“We should be able to be at the other end of the lake an hour from now,” Amy mused.

“Not quite,” Tails said, which caught Amy by surprise. “Plan for a few hours.”

She was confused, but she didn’t press Tails, as she figured he understood best how to calculate the timing of such things. With the last of her money, Amy purchased a wooden boat from a local fisherman, just big enough to seat the four of them. As Knuckles loaded their belongings onto the back of the boat, Amy watched Sonic. 

He was, for some reason Amy couldn’t figure out, in a terrible mood. He stood quite a wide distance from the edge of the water, refusing to let Tails pull him any closer. His feet dragged in the sand as Tails pushed and shoved, and when Tails managed to push him a few paces forward he immediately scrambled back to his original position. His quills were tense and he was growling. The behavior, by all means, was incredibly uncharacteristic of him. Was he okay?

“Come on, Sonic,” Tails grunted as he tried to wrestle with his older brother.

“No way!” Sonic shot back. “C-can’t we just go around?”

“Sorry, buddy. I hate to say it, but It’s much faster to cut straight across, and we need to make up for lost time.”

So he didn’t want to cross the lake… Amy still couldn’t for the life of her figure out why.

“Sonic,” Amy barked, “just get on the boat.”

“I wish it was that easy,” Tails replied. 

As it turned out, this was what Tails meant by the extended timeframe. It took longer to get Sonic on the boat itself than it would to get across the lake. Quite a while of wrestling with Sonic later, Tails paused, turning to the Captain.

“Knuckles, you and the Princess go ahead and push the boat into the water, I have an idea.”

And so, with great hesitation, Amy climbed into the rickety wooden rowboat, grabbing an oar as Knuckles pushed it into the water from behind, jumping in with her at the last second. She watched over her shoulder as Tails lifted a struggling Sonic off the ground. She watched as Sonic flipped suddenly from being completely resistant to completely compliant, clinging to Tails for dear life as they flew over the water towards the boat. She watched as they landed, Tails settling down on the seat beside Knuckles in the front and grabbing the oar from Amy to take over rowing; as Sonic settled on the floor of the boat, clinging to the seat beside her just as tightly as he had been to Tails only moments prior.

“Hey,” Amy said sweetly, combing her fingers through Sonic’s quills, “You can relax.”

“He’s not going to,” Tails said with a sigh. “Not until we reach the other side.”

“This is the worst I’ve seen,” Knuckles commented, casting a glance over his shoulder at Sonic.

“Well, duh,” Tails grumbled, “It’s not every day you have to force a hydrophobe to cross a massive lake.”

Amy looked around her. During her two prior visits to Apotos, she’d gone on many boat rides on Misty Lake. She’d always loved it, being surrounded by water on all sides. The gentle lapping of freshwater against the side of the boat and the soft, watery mist in her face was always soothing to her. But just beside her, her appointed knight felt the polar opposite. His body visibly tensed every time the boat rocked, and he pressed his face down into the seat he was clinging to, eyes squeezed shut.

Amy had always thought Sonic fearless. The way he charged into battle on the day the castle wall was breached, the way he didn’t worry at all about the cliff behind him as he faced off against the badnik scouts. And yet, within one day, Amy learned quite a bit about him. He was mildly afraid of love, she had discovered, and he was terrified of water. She had no doubt that these were moments of embarrassing weakness for him.

All the same, she thought as she slid off her seat and onto the floor just beside him, wrapping her arms around his trembling body, his weaknesses were just more reason to love him.


	11. KINGDOM ARK: Act 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> not my best chapter tbh, but i hope you all enjoy it nonetheless!

After the initial shock of being on the water, Sonic seemed to mellow out a bit; though he still sat stiffly, his muscles tensing underneath his chainmail every time the boat rocked, eyes fixed on the wooden flooring. Amy remained a soothing presence at his side, one arm wrapped around him and occasionally pressing her lips against his cheek, the two boys sitting the row in front of them none the wiser.

“You know,” Knuckles said devilishly, “I’ve heard stories of a sea monster that lives deep within Misty Lake, waiting for little rickety boats like ours to cross so it can snatch it up and eat its occupants.”

“I hate you,” Sonic growled, and Knuckles just laughed.

“Don’t tease him.” Amy chided, shooting a sharp glare at the echidna. Knuckles simply shrugged.

“Did you know that one time, Tails and I tried to teach him to swim, and as soon as the tiniest piece of seaweed brushed against his leg—”

“That is an _order,_ ” Amy growled, and Knuckles fell silent immediately. Sonic looked over at Amy with a relatively surprised expression.

“The sea monster myth actually stems from an interesting scientific and historical standpoint,” Tails mused, breaking the tension as he reached over the side of the boat and let his leather-gloved fingers trail through the water. “Researchers found giant skeletons at the floor of the lake, which are believed to be an ancient species of shark that dwelled here.”

Amy wasn’t entirely listening as Tails went off onto a tangent about theories and data about this ancient shark. Neither was Knuckles, she noted, but Sonic was laser-focused on his brother as the fox prattled on about the shark’s probable diet and how it went extinct. Tails eventually turned around and sat backwards on the bench to face his brother, occasionally glancing behind him as he helped Knuckles row.

The conversation of sharks shifted and melded into other conversations about history, science, until eventually it landed on the Wind Spirit.

“The Wind Spirit cannot reincarnate into a royal family,” Tails was saying, “So that rules out… ugh, two out of at least a million or more of Mobius’s population.”

“The Wind Spirit’s incarnate carries a natural prowess in combat,” Amy chimed in, “So perhaps it’s not a bad idea to screen all of our knights, first, before moving onto the population at large.”

“How are we supposed to screen for the presence of something we can’t see?” Sonic asked, quirking a brow.

“We look for signs.”

“But that makes no sense,” Tails said, “The Spirit stops sending signs by the age of ten, give or take a few years.”

The childhood signs were certainly out of the question, given that twenty-five years had passed since the passing of the last Wind Spirit. Things like the wind blowing a leaf or a handkerchief so it lands precisely on the incarnate’s head, fur or quills bristling in a breeze no one else could feel…

“Ah,” Amy said, “But there are other signs. Deeper ones, ones that linger a lifetime. A connection to the wind, an inexplicable draw towards shrines and statues depicting the Spirit, inherent knowledge of the ceremonial dance, shifts in wind that mirror the incarnate’s more intense emotions…”

“So, you’re saying we need to piss off every knight in the force?” Knuckles asked, and Amy chuckled.

“I sure hope there’s a better solution.”

When the boat landed on the opposite shore, Sonic was the first one off, nearly diving onto the ground and laying in the grass just past the sandy shore. He took a deep, relieved breath.

“Don’t,” He said sternly, “ever make me do that again.”

“Not planning on it,” Tails replied, “Once we finish in Ark, we’ll be heading west, not south, so we won’t have to worry about crossing the lake again.”

“I’m holding you to that.”

Tails sat down beside his brother and absentmindedly picked blades of grass and dropped them into Sonic’s quills (which Sonic would certainly have to painstakingly pick out later).

“There’s maybe two hours at most until sundown,” Tails said, “so we could either begin our trek up the mountain now, or we could settle down for the night and begin the climb in the morning.”

The general consensus was to wait and start their travels in the morning. Finding a place to rest for the night on an unforgiving, icy mountain would certainly be difficult; so the group set up their newly purchased bedrolls and took some time to relax. Sonic, as always, tucked his bedroll underneath Amy’s for extra cushion (despite her protests), then settled down in the grass with his hands behind his head. He stayed there, staring up into the clouds until they faded from sight and were replaced by stars.

Amy hadn’t even entirely realized she’d been staring until the light faded and she could no longer see him.

“Amy, Sonic, then me,” Tails said, announcing the watch shifts, and Sonic hummed in affirmation.

Amy spent her watch shift thinking about Sonic, as that’s where her mind always seemed to drift these days. Not even a month ago Amy resented the knight, and now she couldn’t get him off her mind… Her past self would have surely berated her for such a silly thing. She sighed softly… Falling in love with a knight? She was in denial about it for quite a while, but she realized perhaps that’s the best thing that’s happened to her. Sonic changed her.

Her father… her father wouldn’t be happy to hear the news. Perhaps it would be best to keep their budding relationship a secret. She knew from the start that he would be a problem, because he desired for her to marry a noble. He’d been trying to push her to court Big for quite some time; while she enjoyed the outings to the nearby pond to fish with him, a distraction from the bustling world of politics, she never thought him anything more than a friend.

But Sonic, though a street rat-turned-knight, was everything she could have ever wanted. His fur her favorite color, his dashing smile a light through even the darkest of times, his presence soothing and welcoming. She wished her father would appreciate the beauty of true love.

On top of that, Sonic still had his reservations. Perhaps a simple love potion would tear down his walls… but, no. It wouldn’t be right of her to manipulate him in such a way. She was sure most of his nervousness came from the status issue, his feelings of unworthiness for a princess. Though he did not push her away, and had stated that he did in fact appreciate her affections, he did not reach out to her much aside from subtly leaning into her touches.

He was a thrill seeker, a fast-paced personality, but this was something he needed to take slowly.

She shook Sonic awake for his shift, relishing in the contact for just a moment, then settled down to sleep.

In the morning, Tails woke everybody and the travelers began their trek up the mountain. Soft grass turned into sharp rock as they followed a steep dirt path. The mountain range was large and unforgiving, but while the kingdom of Ark was located at the top of the tallest mountain, it wasn’t far from their current position. It was simply a matter of climbing; there was, for the most part, a somewhat reasonable path that they could follow up the mountain. Though the higher they got, the steeper and more treacherous it became, with large crevasses and boulders to traverse.

And, the closer they got to Ark, the colder it became, until snow and high winds significantly slowed their progress. The four of them bundled up in the thick jackets Amy had purchased in Apotos, walking closer together to preserve body heat.

Amy’s foot slipped on a loose rock and she found herself face-to-face with what she was sure would be death itself; a fall from this height would be much less unforgiving than the fall down the small cliff in the woods. Her heart nearly stopped, her breath hitched as she braced herself for the inevitable. But Sonic quickly caught her and eased her back onto the path, his hands lingering around her arm once she was safe.

“Careful, Ames,” Sonic breathed, pulling her around to the other side of him so that she was walking on the opposite side of the path, where she would be in less danger.

“What did you just call me?” Amy asked, surprised.

Sonic immediately stiffened, a look of mild panic on his face. “S-sorry, Your Highness. It won’t happen again.”

“No, no,” Amy said with a soft laugh, “I liked it.”

The higher they got, Amy noticed, the thinner the air got as well. They took breaks more often, got tired easier. They traveled even slower than they already were, as Tails had informed them, to avoid altitude sickness as best as they could. They discussed a system of support; If anyone felt any signs of fatigue, of shortness of breath, nausea, they’d stop travel immediately. And, if anyone noticed someone looked off and wasn’t speaking up, to call attention to it as soon as possible.

So, when her stubborn knight who insisted he was fine through the physical exertion and a still-healing concussion stumbled over his feet, Amy immediately called for the group to stop.

“I’m okay,” Sonic insisted, “Just lost my footing. Sprain’s still healing.”

Amy wasn’t having any of it.

It took a week to scale the mountain. Far behind schedule, Amy was growing anxious. She knew the King of Ark would be the toughest one to convince, and they were quickly running out of time. She tried to run rough calculations in her head of how long it would take to meet with the King, to descend the mountain and arrive on time for the meeting. It was certainly tight, as the next full moon was only a week away. She could only hope that descending the mountain would be faster than ascending, and as soon as they hit flat ground their pace would significantly increase.

She supposed if she couldn’t make it back in time, her father could run the meeting, but she wanted to be there. What kind of princess would personally invite people only to not show up to the meeting herself?

When the telltale buildings elaborately constructed out of pure ice came into view, lit by the beautiful Northern Lights, Amy breathed a sigh of relief. Though, despite the relief of finally arriving in this isolated Kingdom, anxiety only rose inside of the Princess.

After all, in the morning they’d meet with the King.


	12. KINGDOM ARK: Act 2

As morning sunlight filtered through the icy walls of Ark Castle, casting an eerie blue glow throughout the throne room, Amy fidgeted nervously. She stood just a few paces forward from the entrance, her arms held regally behind her back as she wrung her hands discreetly. Her heart pounded in her chest.

Mobius needed this allyship. That wasn’t to say that the other kingdoms weren’t great allies, but Ark was by far the most powerful.

“Amy Rose,” A deep, gravelly voice drawled, “Princess of Mobius.”

Atop a throne of pure ice, which sat raised from the rest of the room on a platform connected by a short staircase, sat the King. Deep, rich obsidian fur contrasted with the soft blue ice around him, as pitch black as the most unforgiving of nights, and striped with a vicious shade of blood red. The King’s ruby eyes glared deep into Amy’s quivering soul. He sat with one leg crossed over the other, arms folded over his chest, obscuring a tuft of snow-white fur.

While his appearance was in stark contrast to the crystal-clear ice that his throne room was constructed of, his aura matched the bitter cold more than she had expected. Queen Vanilla’s remark about him had certainly been accurate.

“Or is it Queen, now?” The King added with an air of disinterest, his head cocked slightly to one side.

“Princess,” Amy breathed.

“Hmph.”

Amy took a deep breath.

“King Shadow of Ark,” She addressed. “I come to you seeking help.”

She paused for a moment, taking a deep breath, before continuing to press on with her pitch.

“Robotnik’s armies grow closer to Mobius by the week. We are seeking allyship with our neighbors, and humbly request your presence at our alliance meeting on the full moon. In return for your backup in our effort to push back his Empire, we will gladly compensate you in any way you see fit.”

The King stared down at Amy for a long, silent moment. His face showed no emotion.

“No,” He said simply, leaning back in his throne.

“Robotnik’s empire, at one point or another, impact all of us, so I believe it wise to band together now to fight off a war we would all otherwise have to fight individually,” Amy pushed, “It would be much to everyone’s advantage to work together.”

“And what of your Wind Spirit?”

Amy froze, feeling small as she gazed up at the King.

“Still nowhere to be found,” She said quietly, her eyes cast down to the floor.

“If there is no Wind Spirit, there is no point in allying with the likes of you.”

“It’s not hopeless! We—”

“Get out of my Kingdom,” Shadow growled.

“Your Majesty, please consider—!”

King Shadow snapped his fingers and a group of guards quickly ushered them out of the palace, roughly grabbing Amy and her knights by the arm; and they did not stop once the Mobius natives were out of the castle, instead dragging them all the way to the border of Ark. There, they were tossed roughly to the ground, leaving Amy, the two knights, and the blacksmith shivering in the snow.

“Wait!” Amy called after the Ark soldiers, getting up and starting to run after them. “Please, this is a matter of utmost importance!”

One of the soldiers turned to face her, holding out her spear to stop Amy from any further movement into Ark’s territory.

“By our King’s orders, you are not welcome upon our lands. Begone.”

Amy fell to her knees as the Ark soldiers disappeared from view and sobbed. A gentle hand fell upon her shoulder, and she glanced up through teary eyes to see Sonic knelt just beside her. He pulled her into a gentle embrace.

“Your Highness,” He whispered. “I know this isn’t ideal, but the only thing we can do now is move onward.”

“We only have one guaranteed ally,” She said, “This is going horribly.”

“Think of it this way, Princess,” Sonic replied, “I may not be as good at math as Tails, but with the help of Sol’s army, our strength is already doubled. If we land Apotos, that’s triple. Ark’s allyship or not, we already have a strong base of support.”

“We still don’t have the Wind Spirit.”

“That doesn’t matter. That doesn’t mean we can’t win.”

“The Wind Spirit is a sacred being, one that holds the power to bring peace. How can we possibly defeat Robotnik without such a warrior?”

“The same way we got across the lake without getting drowned by the sea monster.” Amy wasn’t quite sure if Sonic was being serious with that remark, or trying to lighten the mood with a joke.

“What…?”

“We must redefine our faith, Your Highness. We cannot let ourselves get wrapped up in something that we cannot find.”

Amy’s eyes widened. “…Abandon the Wind Spirit?”

“Not abandon, necessarily,” Sonic said, placing a hand upon Amy’s, “Simply think practically.”

He stood, using his hold upon Amy’s hand as leverage to guide her to her feet.

“We cannot be weighed down by something we cannot control,” Sonic stated, “A breeze does not stop when it meets a tree; it diverts itself around the obstacle and continues its path. Like the wind, we too can shift, adapt.”

Amy nodded. She took a deep breath.

“Then we must head back to Mobius.”

And so, headed westward, they began their descent down the mountain. Sonic had not let go of her hand, she noted, as they traveled. With Tails and Knuckles walking on the path just behind them, the two boys certainly saw the way his fingers intertwined with hers. Knuckles, she figured, probably wouldn’t think anything of it, but Tails was smart… She couldn’t help but feel nervous. Tails wasn’t anything like her father, but what would the blacksmith think?

They took a break at midday. If Tails (Or Knuckles, for that matter) had noticed and held any particular opinions over their hand-holding that morning, he certainly didn’t voice anything. As her companions set up a small camp to settle down in for the hour, Amy stood and surveyed the landscape. Traveling was treacherous, but Amy could not deny that the snow-capped mountain range was alluring. It was so bright, so soft.

A ball of snow impacted with the side of her head suddenly and she gasped, whirling around to find Sonic grinning playfully at her, just recovering from the follow-through of his throw.

“You’ll regret that,” Amy growled, and Sonic’s smile dropped instantly, his ears pressed back against his head. Amy took in that hilariously terrified expression for a moment, let it linger; then, just as he started to stammer out an apology, Amy reached down and packed together a ball of snow and hurled it at Sonic. It hit him square in the stomach, the tightly packed snow knocking the breath out of him for a moment.

Then, that dashing, playful smile was back, bringing a warm blush to her cheeks; and the Princess and her appointed knight were soon running around, throwing and dodging snowballs.

“Don’t wear yourselves out,” She vaguely recalled hearing Tails call out at some point, from where he and Knuckles were warming up some of their (very much frozen) food by a hand-built fire pit.

Oh, but how she needed something like this; it had been ages since her last snowball fight. It didn’t snow in the grasslands often, and when it did it rarely stuck to the ground for long. Something like this was not considered regal or high-class behavior, but in a solitary moment like this, she couldn’t bring herself to care. That, and hearing Sonic’s playful laugh was something of a blessing; beautiful and carefree.

She hurled snow at Sonic, who deftly parried it away with his shield.

“That’s cheating!” Amy yelled, stomping her foot into the ground.

“I consider it utilizing my resources,” Sonic countered with a shrug, as he slung his shield over his back once more, and while he was busy being smug she threw another snowball at him. He dove off to the side to dodge it at the last second, faceplanting into the snow.

He groaned and laid there on the ground, and Amy rushed over to him, worried that he had gotten himself hurt. Why hadn’t he gotten up?

“Sonic? Are you okay?” She asked, placing a hand on his shoulder.

And then, that cunning bastard flung snow directly in her face. She yelped and stumbled backwards, and all the while he laughed. If looks could kill, Sonic would certainly be a dead man after the glare she shot at him once she cleared the snow off of herself.

“Too much?” He asked with a snicker as he stood up.

Amy yelled something akin to a battle cry and charged towards Sonic, tackling him back to the ground, and the two of them rolled around together in the soft snow. Eventually, they came to a stop, Amy laying atop Sonic, her head rested upon his chest. They were both out of breath and mildly dizzy from the thin air so high on the mountain. But, Amy decided, it was a good kind of dizzy. She felt light as the wind itself, happier than she’d been in quite a long time. She could stay like this with Sonic forever.

Though, they had more important things to do; after they caught their breath, Amy forced herself to get up, followed by Sonic, and the two of them sat down by the fire to warm up.

Just as Amy had hoped, it didn’t take as long going down the mountain as it did going up. Sure, the travels were still dangerous, but the addition of going up a steep incline didn’t slow them any further. As opposed to their seven day trek up the mountain, it took them five days to descend, until the four Mobians were relieved to find themselves upon flat ground.

About a half a day passed of traveling into the grasslands when they spotted a small pack of wild horses grazing on some grass. Immediately, everyone dropped down to a crouch, trying to be as quiet as possible.

If they could secure two horses… their journey home would get just that much faster. And so, Sonic and Knuckles set off, each carrying a length of rope to try to snag the potential mounts.

Knuckles was too slow for a job like this. He was built for power, not speed. So, while Sonic quickly danced around a horse and swung up onto its back, Knuckles was trying to chase down the now fleeing horses in a desperate attempt to catch one. It was, admittedly, a pretty funny sight.

Amy watched as Sonic reached down and pulled the Captain up onto the horse just behind him, and the two of them rode off after the escaping horses.

She watched as Sonic stood up atop the horse, bracing himself as they came up close to the nearest other, and leapt from the back of one horse to the next. Amy grimaced at his recklessness. Sonic didn’t quite land the jump, gripping onto the mane of the creature, tumbling off its flank and being dragged on the ground as it continued to frantically run. With a great deal of effort, Sonic heaved himself atop the horse and yanked on its mane to steer it back towards Amy and Tails. After all, Knuckles had never handed him the other rope, so he had to make do with what he could.

“We have no saddles,” Knuckles said, when they reunited, “But this will help immensely nonetheless.”

He tossed Sonic the rope, and the hedgehog quickly tied it around the horse’s snout. As Amy climbed up behind Sonic, she remembered her fluster when she had put her hands upon Sonic’s waist during their last ride together. However, this time, Amy wrapped her arms all the way around his torso, comfortably leaning her chin upon his shoulder.

With everyone upon their new mounts, their belongings more or less secured in place, they galloped off towards Mobius. Towards home.

Towards a warm bath, soft bedsheets, and freshly cooked food.


	13. ALLIANCE: Act 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i hope you're ready for 80% tooth-rotting fluff

Getting back to Mobius was a win-lose situation, Amy decided. She wanted nothing more than to relax after her arduous travels, be pampered as a Princess again. Baths, servants tending to her every whim, freshly cooked meals, plenty of free time at her disposal… She missed her privileged upbringing quite dearly, even if she’d only been gone a little less than a month.

She’d miss the freedom of the outside world, though. The absence of her overbearing father, the lack of restrictions, social codes. She reluctantly had to instruct the knights and the blacksmith to return to their old formalities once they returned to the castle, and Amy already dearly missed the fleeting touches from Sonic, the freedom to joke around, the ability to be someone who wasn’t a Princess, just for a short while.

“Father,” Amy addressed as she, followed by Sonic, entered the throne room. Sonic immediately knelt in the presence of the King. “I have returned from my travels.”

“Ah,” The King said without so much as a welcoming smile, “What news do you bring?”

“We are guaranteed to see Sol represented at our alliance meeting. Apotos will likely attend, and… Ark…” Amy frowned, stared at the floor. “The King of Ark did not want to cooperate.”

“So,” her father said, slowly, “You pushed to go out and personally invite our neighbors, because you thought letters would not work.”

“Yes, father,” Amy said nervously, not liking where he was heading.

“And, despite delivering personal invitations, you still only managed to secure one kingdom.”

“Maybe two,” Amy added quietly.

“This mission was a waste of time. I expect you to work double-time to catch up on the duties you simply went out to avoid.”

“Father, the trip was _not_ a waste—!” Amy exclaimed.

“Silence!” He roared, and Amy shrunk back. Just beside her, still kneeling, she saw her knight flinch. “I have tried everything I could to get you to listen, Amy. You cannot keep acting out just for opportunities to escape. You have a _duty_ to our _Kingdom_. Start acting like a Princess.”

Amy felt rage build up inside her, boiling in her stomach, burning her soul like a red-hot iron. 

“Father,” She growled through gritted teeth. “You have no idea what we went through out there. I had to struggle, and survive, in a way you’ll _never_ understand. I had to sleep with only a few blankets to separate me from rocks, had to watch my knights be injured, scared, vulnerable, had to nearly freeze to death up in the Northern Mountains! Every single one of my muscles is sore. I risked my life to secure an alliance for our Kingdom, and you have the audacity to tell me to _act like a Princess?!?_ ”

She took a deep breath. Her father did not gratify her with a response. She turned around and started walking out of the throne room.

“Come, Sonic, let’s get a proper bath and something fresh to eat,” Amy said, pointedly looking over her shoulder at her father, “for the first time in weeks.”

Sonic followed her out in silence.

Somewhere in the middle of the winding hallways of Mobius Castle, Sonic broke attention and gently took Amy by the hand. Amy stopped walking turning to face him. Her hands were shaking, but the fury towards her father died down when her eyes met his. Such a beautiful shade of emerald green, captivating, vivid, but gentle.

She pulled him into a hug and they stood like that in silence for a few moments, her face buried into the fur of his neck. No words needed to be spoken between them.

The two of them pulled away from each other when they heard footsteps of another knight patrolling the hall. It was an unspoken agreement that the two of them must hide whatever was happening between them to avoid trouble. She wished it weren’t so, but if her father found out, he’d have Sonic fired, perhaps even executed, simply because Amy wasn’t courting a noble. It pained her.

The two of them found themselves at Amy’s personal quarters. They entered together, and as soon as her door swung shut she took him by the hand and pressed a kiss against his cheek. She guided him over to the washroom and turned on the water, letting the bath fill.

“Y-your Highness,” he stammered as she removed his chainmail and tattered underclothes. He was met with a small shhh from the Princess, who took his hands in hers, then gently removed his gauntlets, exposing beautiful blue hands, fur slightly matted from being unwashed under those gauntlets for so long.

She couldn’t help it; she peeled off her own gloves and ran her fingers through the soft peach fur on his chest and stomach. Her hands trailed upwards, over cobalt shoulders, muscular arms…

She shed her own dress, exposing her pink fur to the cool air, then gently guided Sonic over to the bath, which had now filled with water. As she’d expected, he was resistant, tense, but yielded easily as she climbed into the water, guiding him in after her.

The bath wasn’t built for two, so they cuddled close together. Amy sighed happily, leaning her head on Sonic’s chest and letting the warm water soothe her muscles. Sonic massaged shampoo into her fur, combing it through her quills, before scooping up water in his hands and carefully rinsing it all out. She let her eyes drift closed as he worked the dirt out of her fur, purring softly into his chest. She never wanted this to end.

When Sonic finished cleaning her fur, he shifted his weight a little, causing Amy’s eyes to snap open. She sat up quickly, grabbing the shampoo bottle from his hand as he tried to clean up his own fur.

“Uh-uh,” Amy said, “My turn.”

“Princess, you don’t have to—”

“I want to.”

Sonic fell silent, not pressing further as Amy squirted shampoo into her hands and gently began massaging the dirt out of his fur. It was amazing what a little bit of shampoo could do, really; his fur was so dusty that it had desaturated quite a few shades. As she worked her way up his torso, the vivid blue shined through once more. She watched as he leaned his head back against the edge of the bath, gazing up at the ceiling with half-lidded eyes. He looked just as exhausted as she felt.

She was gentle around his head as she washed his quills, remembering the injury from a few weeks prior. She brushed her thumb through the fur at the site of the injury; it had healed at this point, but Amy was still tentative as she guided him to lean forward. She splashed some water over his head to wash the shampoo out and he gasped and flinched.

“Sorry,” Amy breathed. She couldn’t help but pity his anxiety over water, which seemed to branch out even into something as simple as a bath. Judging by his tension, she was most certain that he only bathed when it was an absolute necessity, preferring standard grooming to something like this.

“All done,” She said softly, placing the shampoo bottle off to the side. “Ready to get out?”

“Hmm,” Sonic hummed, burying his face into Amy’s shoulder, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her close. She giggled.

“Sonic, you hate water,” She said, pressing kisses against the top of his head.

“It’s okay when you’re here,” he whispered.

“Are you hungry?” She asked.

“Yeah.”

“Then let’s go.”

Sonic whined when Amy pulled away, and the sound pulled at her heartstrings quite a bit. He was just so precious. When she climbed out of the bath, he was quick to follow. He picked up his old clothes, which Amy promptly smacked out of his hand. He yelped in surprise.

“There’s no way you’re putting that back on,” She said, “It’s disgusting.”

“I don’t have anything else, Ames.”

“I’ll call a tailor.”

“A tailor, Your Highness?”

“Yes,” Amy insisted, “We’ll get you new armor, too, but for now you need something to distinguish you as a knight, not the average commoner. Wait here.”

And Amy hurried off, quickly changing into a dress she grabbed out of her closet, fresh gloves and boots. All it took was for her to peek her head out of her quarters and flag down a nearby servant to fetch the tailor. A few minutes later, the castle’s tailor appeared at her door, and she let him in. He took measurements of Sonic’s arms and legs, height, and shoe size, then hurried off, returning once more with some knight’s underclothes for him. A simple tan shirt with the royal crest embroidered on the sleeve, pants, and boots.

She missed the tunic he’d worn in Sol. She had loved that outfit on him.

“Keep those measurements on hand,” Amy told the tailor, “I’d like to get a few things custom done for him.”

The tailor, though clearly confused as to why the Princess would want something custom made for a mere knight, nodded and hurried off.

“I can’t accept that, Your Highness,” he said. 

“Nonsense! You deserve something nice. We can keep it in my quarters, too, since I’m sure you don’t have room for many clothes in the barracks. Now come on, let’s get something to eat.”

She walked to the dining room, her knight just behind her. Funny, how before she’d gotten to know Sonic, the telltale tap of boots just behind her was infuriating. Now, it was a feeling of reassurance, of love, of home.

When Sonic tried to wait at the door as Amy sat down at the table, as was standard Knight decorum, she grabbed him by the arm and yanked him over to the table, where he hesitantly sat down just beside her. On the menu was piping hot soup.

What she wasn’t expecting was for her father to come into the dining room as they ate. Sonic, with a mouthful of soup, stumbled to his feet from the chair then knelt.

“Why is the knight eating at the royal table?” Her father demanded.

“Because I’m not going to let him starve while I eat,” Amy argued. She watched as her father grabbed Sonic by the arm and forced him up from his kneeling position, dragging him over to where he by all means _should_ have been: standing posted by the door.

“Leave him alone!” Amy barked, and her father quirked a brow at her.

“Interesting,” He said, “Your travels have changed you.”

“And you’re the exact same man you were when I left,” She countered with a glare. She was fed up with putting up with the King. What did others think of him? Were there rumors about him, like the rumors about the King of Ark?

“I came to inform you that I wish you to lead the alliance meeting in three days,” He said. Oh! So they’d arrived back in Mobius ahead of schedule, thanks to the horses they’d found. “I will observe your performance."

“Yes, father,” Amy said, and she watched as her father exited the room. When he was gone, she looked over to Sonic, who still stood at attention by the doorway. “Come back over,” She said.

“I-I shouldn’t,” he stammered. “The King—”

“The King can eat shit,” Amy growled, catching Sonic as well as many of the other nearby servants by surprise. The servants gawked, wide-eyed, at the Princess’s comment. Amy motioned for Sonic to come sit back down and finish his soup, and he hesitantly approached the table once more.

“Oh,” Amy said, with the most obnoxiously proper tone of voice she could muster, “I apologize. That wasn’t very ladylike of a comment, was it? What I meant to say was, my wonderful father can kindly consume… manure.”

Sonic chuckled.

What kinds of rumors spread around Mobius Castle the evening of Amy’s return? Perhaps, a rumor that the stubborn, headstrong Warrior Princess had grown soft for her Knight, or perhaps that she was playing favoritism, or, chaos forbid, she’d fallen in love. Was the Knight more special than anyone had let on? Had the Princess simply lost her mind? Words passed from servant to servant, knight to knight; the tales of her telling the tailor to custom-make the Knight new clothes, of her allowing Sonic to sit at the dining table alongside her in a manner that was only reserved for nobles, of a single patrol knight seeing the two in the tail end of a hug in the hallway.

As the stories were passed through the castle, they shifted, changed, until perhaps the Princess had been spoon-feeding the Knight, or that she commissioned the tailor for wedding attire. One knight claimed the patrol had seen the Princess kissing the Knight in the quiet hallway, a servant claimed that she had allowed the Knight into her personal quarters for more… mature reasons.

Would those claims ever reach the Princess? Her Knight? How long would it take for such rumors and tales to reach the King?


	14. ALLIANCE: Act 2

“Have you ever been to the museum?” Amy asked Sonic, the day before the alliance meeting was to take place. Amy had spent the past few days working tirelessly to get ready for it, and was, quite frankly, ready for a break. The two of them were walking down the streets of Mobius, trying to ignore the stares and reverent bows of commoners. Sonic, wearing new custom-tailored clothes (a soft tunic of navy blue embroidered with gold thread, vivid red shoes, soft white gloves, and a brown silk scarf, his sword as always sheathed in its scabbard at his hip), looked nothing less than a noble.

“Yes,” He said, “A couple times. Tails loves the place.”

“Well,” She said, “That’s where we’re spending this afternoon.”

She and Sonic approached the magnificent stone building. Columns with ornately carved bases lined the front entrance, and Sonic pulled the wooden door open to allow the Princess to enter.

“I can guarantee there’s one place in here that you haven’t been,” She told her knight, before turning to the attendant at the desk. “I’d like access to the vault, please.”

The vault was a place only those of high enough status could enter; historically, that meant the royal family and the Wind Spirit’s incarnate. Most commoners had no idea the vault even existed, deep below the museum proper.

The attendant led the two of them to a spiral staircase hidden in the back of the building, which Amy and Sonic descended. It was quite far down; the air became cool and humid, the surroundings dark aside from the light shed by the torch the attendant had given Sonic.

“In the vault,” Amy said, using a key to unlock a heavy metal door at the bottom of the staircase, “Is artifacts dedicated to the Wind Spirit, too precious to put on public display.”

As they entered the vault, Sonic walked the perimeter of the room, lighting torches affixed to the walls using the flame from his own. The newfound light illuminated the countless historical items: personal belongings to past Wind Spirits, stone tablets, carvings, paintings, and sculptures, and holy statues.

Sonic’s jaw might as well have hit the floor.

“This is… overwhelming,” He breathed.

“Meh, it’s just old stuff,” She said with a shrug, “but I was hoping maybe something in here could give us a lead. Idunno, inspire us to go in the right direction, or something.”

Sonic seemed strangely… out of it. She couldn’t figure out why, watching as he brushed his hand over an old leather-bound book that she knew contained illustrations that depicted the movements of the Wind Spirit’s ceremonial dance. He didn’t even open the book, he just held it in his hands, staring down at it. Was he not feeling well? Did he not want to be here?

“Are you okay?” Amy asked as Sonic set the book back down in its place.

“Yeah,” he said, distantly. “Yeah. I just… Feel like I’ve been here before. Déjà vu.”

He approached something taller than him covered in a cotton blanket. He gently pulled the blanket down, revealing a suit of vibrant golden armor, covered in intricate engravings and the occasional bracket of silver or ruby gemstone. It looked like it was created to fit a tall wolf, or perhaps a cat. 

“Oh,” Amy breathed, moving to stand beside Sonic. “This is beautiful, isn’t it?”

“What… is this? Ceremonial? Gold is far too soft a metal to wear into battle.”

“Not ceremonial. The real armor worn by Her incarnate is made up of the wind itself, summoned magically. Some say it’s tougher that steel.” Amy said. Apparently it was quite the sight to behold, observing a Wind Spirit incarnate summon their armor out of thin air.

“You know quite a lot about the Wind Spirit,” Sonic commented, his eyes finding Amy’s.

“I was fascinated by it as a kid. Wanted to learn everything I possibly could about Her. I read pretty much every book I could get my hands on.”

Sonic hummed in response, then gently tossed the blanket back overtop the suit of armor. The two of them continued looking through all the items in the vault. As Amy sifted through stone tablets carved in an ancient language she couldn’t read, Sonic knelt at the base of a statue of the first ever Wind Spirit incarnation and simply closed his eyes.

Her gaze bore into the foreign marks on the tablet that she couldn’t decipher; many linguists understood the language, though only a Wind Spirit possessed the innate ability to fluently read this language. If it carried information on how to find an incarnate, she’d never know, because the Wind Spirit wasn’t around to read it; and the only others who could decipher it resided in Apotos. A particular person came to mind: an aged human, a professor at the esteemed university that lived within Queen Vanilla’s Kingdom. Amy had met him once; he was incredibly smart, having spent his whole career studying the Wind Spirit. She found she could talk to him for hours. He had a kind soul and a strange affinity for cucumber sandwiches.

She put the tablet down. Sonic picked it up a few moments later and gazed down at it with a particularly puzzled expression. He looked like he’d seen a ghost.

“What’s wrong?” She asked.

“Nothing,” he breathed. He set down the tablet. Whatever he’d been thinking, he didn’t voice it to the Princess. 

Ultimately, she went home with no more knowledge than she’d already had. Sonic hadn’t been of much use, or particularly talkative. She was frustrated with him.

On the morning of the alliance meeting, Amy hurried towards the board room, a stack of papers in clutched in her arms. She was incredibly anxious; it was her first time taking the lead in something so important, and her father would observe her performance. The King would certainly find fault in anything she did, but she still wanted to do the best she possibly could.

She wished Sonic were here, as she set the stack of papers down on the board room table. He’d certainly be a grounding force for her, someone to remind her to take a deep breath, not to let the future get herself too worked up. But, alas, her father had sent him elsewhere. He had left a letter for her before his departure, which Amy kept tucked safely in her pocket.

_Princess Amy Rose,_ the letter had said, _I must be forthright with you, these words have been written by Tails, as I myself know not how to read or write. Anything I pass along to you has also gone through him; feel free to speak with him if you wish._

_Your Highness, I am headed on a mission out to the West, as far into Eggman’s territory as I can. I think I have a lead on the Wind Spirit. Mystic Jungle lie in those lands, and I intend to make my way there. If I’m able to find anything, I will report to you immediately upon my return. It’s a dangerous place, Ames. If you do not see or hear from me in a month, assume me dead._

_I love you, Princess. I pray the alliance meeting goes well. I’m sorry I couldn’t say goodbye in person._

“Are you okay, Princess?” A gentle female voice snapped her out of her thoughts. 

“Oh, Blaze,” Amy breathed, glancing up at the Queen of Sol, who had arrived for the meeting. “I’m just nervous, I want this meeting to go well.”

“It will go wonderfully,” Blaze reassured her. “I’m sure of it.”

“Would you like anything?” Amy asked, changing the subject, “Food? A drink? Are you all settled in?”

Blaze smiled. “I’d love a glass of water,” She said, and Amy gestured for a servant to go grab one for her friend, “And you need not fret, Amy. I have been offered a room to stay in. It’s very comfortable, your Kingdom has always been so hospitable.”

“I’m glad,” Amy said. 

And now, after days of preparation and anxiously studying her notes, all she could do was wait for the meeting to begin. For Queen Vanilla to hopefully arrive. Amy watched as her father came into the room and settled down in a chair in the back, just beside the hearth, fading into the background.

“So how are things with you-know-who?” Blaze asked with a knowing smile, leaning her cheek upon her hand, her elbow propped up on the table where she sat. Amy blushed wildly.

“Things are going wonderfully,” Amy said dreamily, “He’s so charming.”

“Where is he?”

“Uh…” Amy shot a quick glance back towards where her father sat, unsure of how to phrase such an answer without giving too many specifics. He didn’t look like he was paying attention, but he was most certainly listening, which set her on edge. “He’s… on vacation.”

Queen Vanilla arrived, cutting their conversation short. The servant who Amy had sent off had since returned, leaving glasses of water for each of the participants in the meeting, as well as a plate of thinly-sliced potatoes, salted and herbed. Perhaps having food at a meeting was unprofessional, but Amy insisted on having a welcoming atmosphere.

“Vanilla, I’m glad to see you,” Amy said, “Though it’s deeply unfortunate that the circumstances have led you here.”

“Truly so,” Vanilla said sadly, “My detectives found the badnik carcasses you’d mentioned, and more; still functioning ones, new scouts that Robotnik had sent.”

“Oh, dear,” Amy breathed. She stood from her seat at the table. “Well, now that you’re both here, we can get started.”

“No luck with the Northern King?” Vanilla asked.

“Unfortunately not.” Amy sighed sadly. “You two know why I’ve invited you here, as Robotnik’s armies draw closer and closer to Mobius territory. I believe his goal is to take Mobius first, then to cut through to Apotos to create a divide between all of our Kingdoms. Destroy trade, cut off support…”

She glanced down at her notes.

“We still do not have the Wind Spirit. I’m not sure if we’re any closer to finding Her, but we have plans to search our knight force first, then the rest of our population. My own appointed knight is currently on a mission to find the holy lands of Mystic Jungle, home to the fabled shrine of the Wind Spirit, in hopes of figuring out how to find Her incarnate. If we cannot find the warrior, we must plan to fight on our own, and this is a war that will certainly need the assistance of both of your armies. In… the most ideal situation, we find the Wind Spirit and they lead a march on Robotnik’s Empire. An all-out strike, hopefully powerful enough to debilitate him. And, in the least ideal situation, we hold here and defend, without the Wind Spirit.”

“We have no idea what Robotnik’s plans are,” Blaze commented. “And we cannot delegate all our troops to stay in Mobius indefinitely.”

“I agree,” Amy said. “I don’t believe having your troops here would be wise, as it would set our citizens on edge and be difficult for your Kingdoms in the case of an emergency. Though… it would simultaneously be tough for you to mobilize if we need you on short notice.”

The door to the board room suddenly slammed open, catching Amy and all the other royals by surprise. Four pairs of eyes turned to the door.

_Clak, clak, clak._ The sound of metal-soled shoes reverberating against the wooden floor echoed through the room, the sound then muffled as the owner of such shoes stepped upon the plush carpet underneath the table.

King Shadow.

“My spy has reported,” He said, his hands held behind his back, “that Robotnik intends on wiping out Mobius in its entirety.”

Amy gasped.

“You see,” the King of Ark continued, “he is well aware of your pathetic inability to find the Wind Spirit. If he wipes out Mobius, he can trigger the reincarnation cycle and buy himself some time while he takes over the rest of our Kingdoms. His second destination is Apotos, because therein lies a university with more knowledge and research about the Wind Spirit and Her power than anywhere else.”

He looked Amy in the eye, his intense red irises staring deep into her.

“You have two options, Rose. You can either find your Knight of the Wind, or you can perish.”


	15. ALLIANCE: Act 3

Amy sat in her quarters, organizing papers and notebooks on her desk, which had been a mess of battle plans and defense tactics, most of which weren’t worthwhile. She scanned through sheet after sheet, throwing 95% of them in the trash can with a frustrated sigh.

This was hard. Being queen someday was going to be hard. And with Sonic not around, she felt less at ease with both herself and her surroundings. She felt lonely.

“Amy,” her father addressed as he stepped into her room; her door had been wide open, but he could have at least knocked. “You did well this evening.”

Amy was floored. “I—I did well?”

“Of course you did,” he said. An unexpected moment of positivity. Amy was certain he’d nitpick something she’d said or done, like he always did.

“Thank you, father,” She muttered as she tossed another paper (a map, which had been written on, then scribbled all over until it was no longer legible) in the trash. The plan, which they’d worked out during the meeting, was to work on evacuating Mobius citizens to Sol and Apotos before Robotnik could strike; use the then-empty kingdom as a battleground during Robotnik’s inevitable invasion. Homes would be burnt, destroyed, but nobody would get killed. Wherever the Wind Spirit was, they’d be safe.

“So your knight has headed West,” The King commented, sitting down on the edge of Amy’s bed. “Who authorized this?”

“I thought you did,” She said, giving her father a particularly baffled look. “He left me a note, the way it was worded made it seem like it was an order from you.”

“Hm,” The King hummed thoughtfully, “Upon his return, I’ll have him tried for insubordination and desertion.”

“ _WHAT?_ ” Amy yelled, “No! You can’t—”

“Your attachment to this knight is not allowing you to think clearly, daughter. He vanished without a trace. He is disloyal and wily. Such a knight should not be allowed in our force; if he is lucky enough to survive his trip to Robotnik’s territory, he shall not survive the guillotine.”

“He didn’t vanish without a trace,” Amy whispered. “The letter, it says exactly where he’s going, what he’s doing. He has a lead on the Wind Spirit.”

“And who’s to say that’s the truth? Nobody’s found the Spirit for decades.”

“I—” Amy faltered. Sonic wouldn’t lie like that, would he?

Her father stood and walked over to Amy’s closet; she had left the doors wide open.

“You carry men’s clothes in your closet,” He observed. “Why?”

She figured he was trying to change the subject. The problem was, though he did not know, the conversation was still centered around Sonic.

“Uh,” Amy stammered, “Y-you know, just in case there’s a… time when… I feel like dresses are too constricting?”

“You’re courting someone,” He said. “Don’t think I didn’t overhear your conversation with Blaze.”

Amy laughed nervously. “Uh, yeah. Um. I… I am.”

“Who’s the lucky suitor? When will I meet him?”

“Maybe in… a little while. We’re, uh… I’m trying to focus on the war right now.”

Her overbearing father, for once, smiled.

But then, his smile faltered as something caught his eye: Sonic’s brown silk scarf. He picked it up and held it in his hands, examining it.

“I thought I saw your knight wearing this, just the other day,” the King said. Amy’s heart pounded in her chest, her hands shaking. No, no, this couldn’t happen, not now—the King was already furious with Sonic for running off, the last thing he needed was another reason for the King to want to execute him—

“Be forthright with me, Amy,” her father continued, “Your suitor is not… “on vacation,” is he?”

When Amy did not immediately respond, panicking and racking her brain for some sort of solution, some sort of an excuse—her father went one step further.

“This fell out of your pocket after the meeting,” he said, holding up a slip of paper. The note from Sonic.

No, no!

He unfolded it, and his eyes scanned the words within.

“I love you, Princess,” he read, before glancing overtop the sheet of paper at her; and she just stood there, trembling. Oh, heavens, Sonic was most certainly a dead man upon his return. She may as well start mourning now.

“Father, I—”

“When I said I wanted you to find someone to marry,” Her father growled, “I meant a _noble_ , Amy.”

“I don’t care,” She shot back, getting up from her desk and yanking the scarf out of the King's hands. She wrapped it gently around her own neck. “Sonic has done more for me than anyone within the noble lines of Mobius. He’s braver, stronger, more loyal, and certainly has much more personality than anyone else you’ve tried to force me to court!”

Her father sighed, setting the letter down upon Amy’s desk, turning his back to her and walking out of the room. He paused in the doorway, and glanced over his shoulder.

“I will add treason to his list of charges,” The King said. “And I will assign you a new knight.”

“Treason?!?” Amy yelled, outraged, but the King was already gone, the door shut.

Amy fell to her knees onto the plush rug, trying to steady her breathing. What was her father thinking? Courting him was by no means an act of treason; the King was simply angry and reaching for more reasons to slaughter Sonic.

She wished she could get in contact with Sonic somehow. She couldn’t send a letter: no couriers would dare setting foot near the Empire, and even if she were to find one, Sonic had never learned to read, so it would mean nothing to him.

She could try to follow him, search for him out there; but it was too risky. He could be anywhere, and as much as she hated to seem so selfish, if she got killed… then boom. There goes the Mobius royal line.

When morning came, to distract herself from recent events, Amy made her way to the castle library, where she dug up every book she could find regarding the Wind Spirit. In one of the books, she found a description of the text she had been unable to read upon the ancient stone tablet in the museum’s vault.

“Seek the heart of Mystic Jungle,” it said, “though only a gentle breeze may find its way, as those unworthy are not permitted upon Her throne.”

The gears turned in her head. What did this mean? Sonic was headed to Mystic Jungle. Who had told him about it? How did he find a lead on the Wind Spirit that she hadn’t? Why hadn’t he said anything to her?

…Had he read the tablet? Had he understood the ancient language?

That made no sense. There’s no way he could have understood it, it must have been some weird coincidence. Maybe Tails was able to track something on the device he’d been working on. 

Amy went to Knuckles.

“Sonic never learned how to read,” Amy said, standing beside the echidna as the he oversaw the training of his unit. “Did you?”

“Yes,” Knuckles said. “Tails taught me.”

“So… why didn’t he teach Sonic?”

“He did,” Knuckles explained, “Sonic just couldn’t retain it. If you want specifics, talk to Tails.”

And so she did. She made her way into the blacksmith’s workshop, gently knocking on the doorframe as she entered. Tails, who was busy hammering out a dent in a knight’s armor, called out a quick “Just a minute!”

The knight in question, who was standing a little ways away from Tails, was a familiar red-furred wolf.

“Gadget,” Amy greeted kindly, smiling at him. “How have you been?”

“G-good, Your Highness,” He stammered nervously. He bowed to her, and she could see his hands shaking.

“I’m… glad I ran into you,” She said to him, “I want to apologize. I was immature and cruel, and you did nothing to deserve the way I treated you.”

“O-oh,” he breathed, “Uh—”

“I do not expect you to accept my apology. But, um… I hear you’ve done great things in the force within the past month. If you—if you wanted another shot at being a higher rank, I do have an opening.”

“D-did you force him to quit, like the others?” Gadget asked, his voice quiet, timid. The poor guy.

“No,” Amy replied. “Quite the opposite. I treated him too well, and… now my father wants him dead.”

“ _What??_ ” Tails exclaimed, his head shooting up from his work, staring at her with wide eyes. He fumbled, nearly dropping his hammer.

“Details later,” Amy said. Tails nodded and went back to work.

When Tails finished, he handed the armor back to Gadget. Gadget took the armor, paused to offer Amy a timid smile, then hurried off.

“Okay,” Tails said, “You have my attention.”

“My father did not order Sonic’s departure,” Amy said. “Sonic must have run off on his own, no authorization. My father wants to charge him with insubordination and desertion. He found Sonic’s letter, and added treason to his list, as if us courting were some government-defying act!”

Tails frowned.

“If Sonic survives the Empire,” Amy whispered, “My father will have him executed.”

Tails’ head hit the desk he had been working at and he sighed loudly, grasping at the fur on his head and tugging just slightly.

“This is bad,” he said.

“Yeah. I’m trying to find a way to save him. A legal way, since that’s the only language my father understands.”

“I think he knew that this was going to happen,” Tails said, “When he left. He was cryptic and vague when I tried to question him on what he was doing, but it was very clear that, whatever he’s up to, he’s weighed the consequences in their entirety.”

That didn’t offer her much solace.

“I came because I had a question for you,” Amy said, “Knuckles said you taught him to read and write, but that Sonic wasn’t able to pick it up…”

“He had trouble connecting letters with their sounds,” Tails said. “He kept trying to make other markings, insisting that some illegible script was the word for “castle” or whatever. Eventually… I got frustrated. Gave up.”

Amy hummed. “Did those markings he would write… did they change? Was it some made up thing, or was it consistent time after time?”

“It was consistent,” Tails said, “As if he were writing in some other language. One I’d never seen before.”

Amy frowned. She was still carrying the book with the transcription of the stone; She pulled it out from where it was tucked underneath her arm and flipped it open to a page that contained the original ancient text, then held it out to Tails.

“Did it look like this?”

Tails took the book into his hands, stared down at it for a long moment.

“It’s been a long time,” Tails said softly, “but… maybe. Some of these letters look structurally similar to how I remember…”

That was enough for Amy. She thanked Tails and ran out of the room. She was making progress. She had a speculation, a theory, an inkling of an idea, that could potentially save Sonic upon his return.

If he did return.

But without solid proof, what could she do?

Gadget was given the job.

She wondered if he had sought out the King and requested it, or if the King had found him and decided he wanted the young knight back in the position he once filled. Nonetheless, Amy found herself walking down the streets of Mobius with the wolf at her side.

He had tried to walk a considerable amount of paces behind her, but she insisted that he walk beside her. He was surprised. The two of them carried on idle conversation, Amy wanting to get to know the guy a little bit better.

“Your Highness!” A voice called out from somewhere behind her, and Amy turned around to find herself face to face with a tall violet hedgehog, an adult woman. The commoner bowed to Amy. “I’m sorry to be a bother to you, but I hear you’ve been searching for the Wind Spirit, and I believe I may be able to help.”

And, so, Amy and Gadget found themselves within a small, humble home a short ways down Press Garden Street. It was lively, with two other hedgehogs around Amy’s age (perhaps a little older) practicing music in the living room, one on the piano and another playing a drum. Upon seeing the Princess of Mobius enter their home, they froze, staring wide-eyed, before bowing respectfully.

The violet hedgehog—likely the mother—led them into the kitchen.

“Would you like some tea?” She asked, picking up a kettle and heating it up atop the fireplace.

“I would love some,” Amy said with a smile.

“Sugar? Milk?”

“Sugar, please.”

The hedgehog brewed the tea. Meanwhile, Amy looked around the room. She’d never been in such a quaint place before. Everywhere she went, the museum, the castle, Sol, Apotos, Ark, she was in large, lavish buildings, places fit for royalty and nobility. This was the home of a commoner, a territory completely new to her.

It was beautiful in its own respect. Quiet.

A teacup was set on the table just in front of her, and Amy smiled graciously. The hedgehog sat in a chair just opposite the Princess.

“What is your name?” Amy asked.

“Aleena,” the woman responded, taking a sip of her own tea.

“A pleasure to meet you, Aleena.”

“I’m sure you hear from plenty of people with made-up stories about the Wind Spirit, so I thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to listen to me.”

“What do you know of the Wind Spirit?” Amy asked.

“I am the Wind Spirit’s mother,” She said sadly. Amy gasped. “The twins you saw in the living room… there was a third. A triplet. Just after the three of them were born, a mighty breeze that knocked open my windows sent a single spring leaf floating in. It landed square atop my son’s head; a sign from the Wind Spirit Herself.”

Aleena took a deep breath. She sipped her tea, letting what she said sit for just a moment. Amy didn’t dare say anything, as she didn’t want to interrupt the story.

“I… To this day I regret what I did, Your Highness. I knew I was unable to financially or emotionally support the Wind Spirit’s incarnate, so I took him out to the river, hoping he would die there. I… I figured, if he drowned, or was hunted by a feral animal, his spirit could be reborn into a family more capable of accommodating the Spirit. I left the child with nothing more than a wicker basket to float downstream in and a necklace with a tag engraved with his name, so if his body were to be found, he could be given a proper burial.”

“You think he may have reborn?” Amy asked softly. 

“That’s what I thought years ago,” Aleena breathed, “But with Ark being the next Kingdom in the reincarnation cycle, and no reports of a Wind Spirit being found there, I have reason to believe he may have survived.”

“What was your son’s name?” Amy asked.

“I’m not sure how relevant it is,” Aleena said, “for if he survived, he wouldn’t have been able to read the engraving. There is a chance he may have taken on a different name, unless someone was able to read it for him.”

“Indulge me, anyway,” Amy said.

“His name was—”

Aleena was cut off by a massive explosion. Amy gasped, jumping up to her feet. She and Gadget ran outside to assess what had happened, to find the streets crawling with badniks.

“Come, Princess,” Gadget said, “We must get to safety.”

“Thank you, Aleena,” Amy said over her shoulder before running after Gadget. The two of them, weaving through alleyways, made it back to the castle. Amy hoped Aleena and her family would end up alright. If she could, she resolved to return to the woman to get the rest of the story. To get a name. She was so close; curse Robotnik’s timing!

“Ohohoho!” A laugh rang out as Amy and Gadget approached the castle. Knights had mobilized, forming a protective barrier between the castle and their assailant: A stout human with a large moustache. Robotnik. 

Amy’s father stood on the other side of the knights, just by the castle doors. Amy and Gadget fell into place just beside him. Beyond the castle walls, Amy had witnessed massive hordes of robotic soldiers, burning buildings and mercilessly taking lives. She hadn’t expected Robotnik to attack so soon! Not everybody had been evacuated yet, so many unfortunate commoners and peasants—like Aleena—hadn’t made it out of the Kingdom’s territory yet.

“King Rose of Mobius, you need not fret!” The human said with an evil sort of joviality, “I will not take your life, nor the life of your daughter. I’m feeling generous; the Wind Spirit cannot reincarnate into royalty, after all.”

“Get out of our Kingdom!” Amy yelled aggressively, drawing her hammer and gripping it tight in her hands, assuming a battle-ready stance. She wasn’t going to let Mobius fall.

“Oh, poor young Princess,” Robotnik said with a grin, “You can’t be royalty if you have no Kingdom left to rule.”


	16. Sonic, Alone

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> today, we take a quick dive into Sonic's brain!

Sonic felt guilty for lying to the Princess. 

Well, he wasn’t _really_ lying; he just was… withholding some truth. He just wanted to be certain before he committed to telling anybody. “A lead on the Wind Spirit” was a good enough excuse to run off without permission, and it wasn’t technically wrong. 

The trip to the museum’s vault, it had thrown him off more than he could have ever imagined. It sparked something, lit a fuse inside of him, one that he didn’t fully understand, one that he hadn’t known was even there.

It was a gamble, running off like this directly into Eggman’s territory. A gamble where his own life was at play. The Empire was a dangerous place, lined with badniks and factories at every turn. But it wasn’t the badniks he was afraid of: if what he suspected was true, well, he’d have no problem fighting his way through hordes of badniks.

What he truly worried about was, if he didn’t find what he was seeking, Mobius would not welcome him back. In a best-case scenario, he’d be banished, once more without a home. In a worst-case scenario, and the much more likely of the two, he’d be executed on sight.

Would Amy welcome him back? She was smart, how long before she realized he hadn’t been assigned a mission? That he hadn’t told her the whole truth? He knew she could tell he had been acting strangely, he could see the frustration in her eyes.

Was withholding communication the right move? Would pushing her away help protect her?

Sonic wanted nothing more than to make sure she was safe. What had started out as a simple job and a strong respect for the Princess had quickly branched off into something much stronger, a territory he had never tread before: love.

Sonic pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind for now; that was an issue to worry about later. At the moment, he was galloping through the grasslands upon a horse he’d stolen from the castle’s stable.

Amy had mentioned the adulthood signs…

_A connection to the wind._ He felt it even now, riding as fast as he possibly could, feeling the freedom of the winds rushing through his quills. It felt like home, like he and the wind were one single entity. He felt it strongest the faster he went.

_An inexplicable draw towards statues and shrines._ All his life, his fascination with the Wind Spirit had come in the form of a strange sense of confusion. Even before he truly understood what the Spirit was, or even had the language to describe such a feeling, he would find himself getting lost within himself as he gazed upon the statue within Mobius’s town square. He could never understand why. In his teenage years, before Tails was hired as the castle blacksmith and he and Knuckles joined the ranks of knights so they could follow him, Sonic would sometimes skip meals if it meant leaving Her a daily offering. He never told the others.

_Inherent knowledge of the Ceremonial Dance._ His mind drifted to the leatherbound book in the museum vault; he needed not even open it to know and understand its contents. He felt as though he’d held it before.

_(Something came to mind; a memory that decisively was not his. Standing in front of a large grassy clearing surrounded by trees, in the center a circle of tall, rectangular rocks. Someone handing him, her, them, the leatherbound book. The words, “Many have studied the text, mastered the dance, but a true Wind Spirit need not look past the first page, for it is passed from lifetime to lifetime within Her memory.”)_

_Shifts in wind that mirrored intense emotions._ Was that not just a coincidence, when he was angry? Frustrated? Afraid?

How had nobody noticed? How had _he_ not noticed? His mind swirled, and so did the winds around him. Anxiety built in the pit of his stomach the further he rode. Part of him hoped that it wasn’t him. What would a responsibility like this entail?

He’d heard that most Wind Spirits died a horrible, gruesome, violent death.

But, the other part of him hoped he could confirm his suspicion. He became a knight for a reason, to protect his Kingdom. Every question he’d had would fall into place, would suddenly make sense. It would mean passage back into his homeland. It would mean seeing Amy again.

He breached the border between Mobius and the Empire’s territory. It only took a day to arrive; he was uneasy with how dangerously close it was to his home. The Eggman Empire was a wasteland of steel and reeked as his multitude of badnik-generating factories produced a nasty, rancid smoke. This place was gray, unnatural, dying.

He choked upon the dirty air, feeling ill at ease. He reached to pull his scarf over his mouth…

Only to realize he’d left it back in Mobius. Chaos, he knew he was forgetting something. As much as he had been hesitant to accept any tailored clothes from the Princess, he had really liked that scarf. In a time like this, something like that scarf would have been a warm reminder of home. He felt naked without it, even though he’d only owned the thing for a couple of days.

He did, however, carry in his satchel an illustrated portrait of the Princess, which he took a moment to pull out and look at. He dearly hoped she was holding up okay without him. Had the meeting gone smoothly? At this point, the full moon was high above his head, and the meeting was likely over.

He hoped Amy was sleeping soundly. He certainly wouldn’t be getting any sleep tonight; there was simply no time. The faster he could get in and out of this territory, the better.

Sonic sighed, spurring his horse to run faster. He ran straight through a line of badniks, illuminated just slightly by the moonlight and the glowing lights on their bodies, and with one swipe of his sword decimated them all. 

He rode through the night. Looming in the distance was Mystic Jungle: he could just barely make out its silhouette against the starry sky.

As the sun breached the horizon, indicating morning had arrived, Sonic found himself at the edge of Mystic Jungle, which was heavily guarded by hundreds of badniks. Whatever was in there, Robotnik certainly wanted to keep people out.

Sonic dismounted his horse and charged forward, slashing and stabbing the badniks as they charged towards him. There were too many of them. He was overwhelmed, outnumbered, exhausted from lack of sleep, and hungry.

One of them brought a sword down onto his chestplate hard enough to create a large gash in the middle—the impact sent him stumbling backwards—and another shot a metal projectile that grazed his cheek. As he felt blood dripping through the fur on his muzzle, the adrenaline kicked in and he pushed forward, not letting the badniks get the best of him. Carving a path into the jungle. No matter the odds, he had to make it. He could not lose here, not when he was so close.

Once he made it to the other side of the blockade of badniks, he quickly retreated into the dense trees, running fast, faster than he’d ever run before, faster than he’d known he _could_ run, the wind guiding his momentum forward.

He just needed to get out of the range of the badniks. Once he lost them, he’d be safe; at least until it was time to emerge once more.

And so, he only stopped when the badniks were far gone. He took a moment to catch is breath, then observed his surroundings. Deep in the jungle, the only noises were the sounds of birdcalls and the rustling of leaves. This place was serene and vivid green, untouched by the Empire.

Mystic Jungle was rumored to be a formidable place to those who were not welcome, after all.

He took a deep breath. A soft breeze blew northward, and Sonic, following nothing but the breeze and a weird feeling deep in his gut, turned north.

Later, the direction of the breeze changed. He, too, changed direction, westward. It was like a weird map of intuition, he realized, following the directions of the wind as they led him to the deep center of the jungle.

When he arrived at the heart of the jungle, he found himself in a clearing, a large shrine standing in the center of it.

“Only the worthy are permitted upon her Throne,” Sonic whispered, recalling the words he had somehow understood on the ancient stone tablet. He had found this place. Could that mean—?

He approached the shrine- an extremely tall statue, a depiction of the Wind Spirit before She gave up Her physical form to exist in the souls of mortals. Ruins of a tall building surrounded the statue; columns and floors that indicated that perhaps, once, this statue was indoors. A temple, perhaps. The support base of the statue itself was taller than Sonic. Carved into the base were intricate weaving lines, tying knots within themselves. Such lines continued up the statue itself, up the Wind Spirit’s robes and crown. Such craftsmanship was breathtaking.

Sonic knelt, like he would to a King or Queen. 

“Wind Spirit,” He whispered in prayer, his head bowed, his gaze fixed on the ground. “Please, I beg of you to answer just one question.”

He stood, slowly, lifting his head. He gazed up at the statue and reached out with a shaking hand.

“Is it me?”

His hand touched the base of the statue, and the weaving lines lit up a vibrant, glowing blue. Sonic gasped, stumbling backwards a few paces, watching as the blue glow worked its way up the statue, following these patterned lines. The eyes glowed, and, from the statue’s hand—stretched upwards toward the sky— the blue light shot upwards through the canopy of trees, illuminating the heavens in a way that felt vaguely reminiscent to the Northern Lights he’d seen during their trip to Ark.

Walking into the jungle that morning was a simple knight who had risked it all on an impulse, nothing but a suspicion and a hope that he was right. A knight still weary from a month of arduous travels; a knight sleep deprived and near-starved (It was a feeling he remembered all too well from the time before he met Knuckles and Tails, surviving alone out in the woods).

Walking out of the jungle that afternoon was the most powerful warrior in the land, clad in radiant, golden armor he had only just learned to summon. 

Though, he was still the same person he was before. He had no idea what this would mean for him; and he was afraid.


	17. OCCUPIED MOBIUS, Act 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> everyone's an idiot

It had been four days. Four miserable days since Sonic’s departure. Was that how she was counting time, now—how long it had been since she’d last seen Sonic?

She missed him quite a bit. His absence felt like a hole was carved into her heart; and with Dr. Ivo Robotnik aggressively ravaging her Kingdom day in and day out, she was getting exhausted. Amy spent quite a lot of her time in the throne room with her father, trying to work out what to do. While her father wanted to draft up some sort of treaty, Amy knew Robotnik wouldn’t bite; so she proposed war plans, battle tactics, ways to defend the Kingdom. Blaze and Vanilla were in and out, focusing on getting as many of the Mobius residents out of the kingdom as they could. King Shadow? His location was a mystery; but she figured he had headed back to his Kingdom to get reinforcements.

She hoped he was. Day after day, knights and civilians were dying out on the battlefield. How long would they last without backup?

The two allied Queens’ job was tough. Robotnik had set up a perimeter around Mobius, making it difficult for anybody to pass through… In, or out. It didn’t take long until they were unable to evacuate any more citizens due the growing blockade.

Aside from battle plans, Amy focused on figuring out how to allocate food to the remaining population. With trade near impossible and most local farmlands burnt down, feeding her citizens had become a massive issue. Luckily, water was not of concern, because of the river that passed through the Kingdom, bisecting it. The water was clean and safe to drink. For that, Amy was grateful.

On the third day of Sonic’s absence, an unnatural light had illuminated the sky from a fixed point in the west. Accompanying the light out west was the illumination of the eyes and certain details on every Wind Spirit statue and shrine in Mobius. The sight was truly something to behold, a powerful magical force that signaled one very important thing:

The Wind Spirit had awoken.

And judging by the location of the light source, Sonic had made considerable headway on whatever lead he had about the Wind Spirit. She prayed that the Wind Spirit would see to it that Sonic returned home safe. Her half-baked ideas on how to protect him from her father had been abandoned due to circumstances, but she’d figure it out when he arrived. If he arrived.

Perhaps the Wind Spirit would defend him in front of the King.

Robotnik didn’t take to this new development particularly well; it threw a massive wrench into his plan to destroy all of Mobius before the Spirit could be found. He toughened up his hold on the border, resolving to do everything in his power to keep the newly-discovered incarnate out. For the most part, he cut back on attacks, though would occasionally launch a couple just to terrorize those who still remained within Mobius.

Presently, Amy and her father were running down the street away from a massive metal automaton; far taller than any of the surrounding buildings. They had been surprised by an attack while trying to do some reconnaissance on the condition of their Kingdom; while Robotnik had said he wouldn’t intentionally kill the royal family, he certainly wasn’t stopping his badniks from attacking them.

Gadget yanked Amy to the side as a robotic clawed hand shot out with the intention to grab her. The wolf grabbed his sword and lashed out, trying to sever the claw from the machine’s arm, but his blade barely made a dent. If anything, the scraping of steel against steel only worked to dull her new knight’s blade.

They sprinted down the street, but soon realized they were cornered, as the road a little ways down was blocked by rubble and debris.

Amy drew her hammer. Her father took a few steps back; he was never much of a fighter. Every monarch had their strengths, and the King’s strength lay in the rule of law.

(Her mind went back to Sonic once more; how her father was so quick to throw execution charges upon him for disappearing. Sure, he had abandoned his duty to stay by her side, but it was for a good cause, was it not? Perhaps it was her own fault, in treating him as an equal instead of as someone working underneath her, she’d given him too much freedom…)

Ignoring her father’s protests about her fighting, Amy and Gadget charged forward, beginning their attack on their assailant. Gadget swiftly took out a few small badniks, bashing one away from him with his shield before closing in and swiftly kicking it hard enough that its head flew off its body. Though, despite their best efforts, they quickly found themselves outnumbered and outmatched, as more and more badniks filed in.

They were surrounded. This was the end, wasn’t it? Amy couldn’t help but wonder; if Sonic were here, would he find a way to save the day?

Amy stepped backwards, stumbling over a loose cobblestone brick and falling to the ground. Gadget grabbed her by the arm, hoping to yank her back up as the machine ten or more times their size reared its arm back.

The clawed arm began its descent, an intent on crushing the Princess and her new knight like bugs. Amy shielded her eyes with her arm. She didn’t want to watch.

What happened in the following moments Amy was unsure; but she distinctly remembered a sudden flash of golden light, a gasp from her father and Gadget, a _shing!_ of metal against metal, and a loud thud…

She unshielded her face and her eyes widened as, standing before her covered head-to-toe in golden armor so radiant it nearly glowed, was the Wind Spirit themself. Beside them, the robot’s arm, completely severed from its body, lay on the ground. She could only watch in awe as the warrior fought off the entire crowd of badniks.

They should have been, by all means, completely overwhelmed. There were so many robots to face off against, and the large one was still fighting the best it could with just one arm; but this was the Wind Spirit. They were clearly a capable fighter, channeling the wind into every slash of their golden-hilted blade. While the Wind Spirit was obviously trained in the ways of the sword, Amy noticed that they were a little clumsy at times, unaccustomed to fighting with weapons of the Wind.

The massive badnik grabbed the Wind Spirit in its claws and threw them as hard as it possibly could, sending them crashing through the walls of a nearby house and, almost comically, out the other side. Amy gasped; nobody could possibly survive an impact like that.

But the Wind Spirit got back up to their feet and charged forward faster than Amy had ever seen anyone run before. They were okay. Their armor must have protected them. How?

Amy tore her eyes away from the warrior for a moment, turning to look at her father, who was backed up against the rubble blocking the road. He, too, was watching in awe and shock as the unidentifiable knight made quick work of the massive crowd of badniks. The man, as harsh and stern as he was, certainly had a reverence for the Wind Spirit. Maybe, she mused, the appearance of the Wind Spirit could soften his cold heart.

When every machine was reduced to a pile of rubble, the Wind Spirit turned their head—obscured by a golden helmet—to look at Amy and Gadget. They slowly approached, then reached their hand out.

She took them by the hand, and they helped her to her feet.

“Th-Thank you,” Amy stammered, and she curtsied before the knight. The knight, in return, bowed to her.

A metal ear flicked, sensing the approach of an errant badnik, which was quickly cleaved in two by the work of the knight’s blade.

They waved for Amy, Gadget, and the King to follow them; and the four made their way back to the castle, where they found Blaze. The southern Queen, shocked to see the presence of the Wind Spirit, immediately knelt before them. The Wind Spirit was considerably surprised—though they had not spoken once, Amy could see it in the way they carried themself, their body language. They were certainly not accustomed to having royalty bow to them.

Amy glanced at the Wind Spirit, who had recovered from their surprise and now stood at attention, their hands behind their back. The proper attention stance, the skilled fighting… they were definitely a trained knight. Her plan to search the knight regiments first was the right idea, and if only she had executed that plan sooner, she would have been the one to discover the Wind Spirit.

She and Sonic. If only he were here. If she had found the Spirit sooner, Sonic wouldn’t have run off with his lead, and the King wouldn’t want him executed. Oh, chaos, she couldn’t help but feel like this whole situation was entirely her fault.

“Have you seen Sonic?” Amy blurted out, staring hopefully at the golden-clad knight.

A nod.

“Is he safe?”

Another nod.

All the tension in her body relaxed. Sonic was safe, wherever he was. 

“Well,” The King of Mobius said, “If you see him again anytime soon, tell him never to set foot in my Kingdom again, if he wants to live.”

Amy could have sworn she heard a soft chuckle come from the Wind Spirit. 

It was interesting, Amy mused, that the Wind Spirit remained silent. Could they speak at all? She assumed they could, given that they had laughed (albeit very softly, barely audible)…

There was a lot of work to be done, especially now that the Wind Spirit was at their disposal. Her father sent them on plenty of missions—perhaps too many, but Amy didn’t think much of it at the time. It was easy to forget there was a person under that magical armor, especially when the Wind Spirit did not speak or remove their armor.

Nonetheless, they carried out each order without question—leading battles, protecting citizens, even running silly errands unfit for someone with the status of the Wind Spirit. Fetching papers, cleaning, menial tasks. Leave it to her father to force them to do things like that… As her father forced the Wind Spirt to act more like a servant than a revered warrior more, Amy became increasingly frustrated. The poor knight… did they not know they could object? Or did they simply want to make a good impression?

On the fourth day of Robotnik’s occupation of Mobius (seven days since she’d seen Sonic, she noted), Amy witnessed the Wind Spirit stumble over their own feet a little ways down the castle hall.

She’d had enough. She took this matter straight to the King.

“You’re overworking the Wind Spirit,” She asserted with a frown.

“They have an obligation to the Kingdom,” Her father said, “To assist in any way possible with the war effort. Such is the life of a hero.”

“Yes, but there is a line that has been crossed!” She argued. “The Wind Spirit is a fabled warrior, a powerful ally, not a servant! It’s clear they have not slept or even so much as taken an hour’s break in _days_. This is not how you treat one born of a divine!”

“There is much to be done. Now, Amy, go make yourself useful.”

Amy groaned loudly and stormed out of the throne room. She made her way to the blacksmith.

“Princess!” Tails exclaimed happily upon seeing her enter. “You here to avoid the King, too?”

“Don’t even get me started,” Amy grumbled, flopping down on a stool beside a wooden table. Atop said table sat the Wind Spirit, their legs crossed over one another, leaning back slightly and using their hand for support behind them. They looked relaxed.

“The Wind Spirit has agreed to let me run a few tests,” Tails said, his voice eager and chipper, “While he, uh, takes a break.”

“How do you know he’s a… he?”

Her mind flitted back to her conversation with Aleena… She had mentioned the Wind Spirit had been a son, hadn’t she?

“I asked,” Tails said with a shrug. “Though he doesn’t talk, because he’s not ready for anyone to find out who he is quite yet.”

“How do you know that?”

“A long series of yes or no questions. Hey—” Tails turned his attention to the Wind Spirit, “summon your sword again.”

The Wind Spirit held out his free arm and, in a flash of light, a sword materialized out of thin air.

“Fascinating,” Tails said, observing the sword closely. He traced a finger up the flat of the blade. “It’s entirely magic. There’s really no scientific explanation for something like this. Summon your shield?”

The sword disappeared. A moment later, a large golden shield appeared in its place.

“Wow,” Amy breathed. “Have you always been able to do this?”

The Wind Spirit shook his head.

“So you’re just as new to this as we are, huh…” Tails mused. “Sword?”

He summoned his sword again.

“I assume this same phenomenon happens upon summoning and de-summoning the armor, though he won’t comply with that when I’ve asked him. For the same reason why he doesn’t speak.”

The sword vanished from the Wind Spirit’s hands.

“Though,” Tails continued, “I’ve made observations where I could. Hedgehog, green eyes. The armor does not appear to inhibit movement in any way—it even flexes with his ears.”

To punctuate Tails’ point, the Wind spirit flicked an ear. Amy had seen that happen earlier, on the battlefield.

“It can take heavy impacts,” Amy said. Tails grabbed a notepad and started hastily writing. “I saw him get thrown through a stone-brick house and then get up like nothing happened.”

The Wind Spirit’s foot tapped against the leg of the table, quickly and repeatedly. A fidget.

“Doesn’t like sitting still for long,” Tails mused. “Uh—sorry, for treating you like a weird science experiment. It’s just—” He chuckled, “kinda how I am.”

Amy heard a soft yawn, muffled by the Wind Spirit’s armor. He held a hand up in front of his mouth (which Amy thought to be funny, as there was no reason to do that when his face was covered anyhow), then let his head flop backwards, staring up at the ceiling.

“I have a cot in the back,” Tails said, “Take a nap, dude.”

The Wind Spirit cocked his head to one side inquisitively.

“Just don’t tell Sonic,” Tails said, pointing towards the back of the workshop, “He’ll give me an earful and a half if he finds out I spend whole nights in here frequently enough to warrant a bed.”

The Wind Spirit slid off the table and went over to the cot, flopping down on it. Surely sleeping in armor would be uncomfortable, but he didn’t seem to mind much. Or, maybe he did mind—but he wasn’t doing anything about it.

“Poor guy,” Amy said softly, “It must be stressful.”

“I can’t even imagine,” Tails whispered back.

Amy sighed and rested her head on the table. 

The Princess had no recollection of falling asleep, but when she found herself waking up early in the evening, she noticed that Tails had slipped a small pillow under her head. The Wind Spirit was gone, off do whatever tasks the King had assigned to him. Amy vaguely remembered mention of the reconstruction of a bridge across the river was happening today. She failed to see why the Wind Spirit was needed for that project, as the local carpenters and tradesmen who hadn’t been evacuated would have done the job just fine on their own.

That night, Amy sat on the side of her bed, holding Sonic’s scarf in her hands. Oh, she missed him so dearly, each passing day that she had not seen him had worn at her soul. She had to find a way to protect him from execution, because if he died… well, she simply wouldn’t be able to bear it. The grief would tear her apart.

“—Don’t tell anybody I’m here,” she heard a quiet voice instruct Gadget from the other side of the door.

Amy reached over and set Sonic’s scarf down on her desk. There was a gentle knock, then the door slowly opened— as if trying to give her enough time to call out and stop the visitor if she were busy or not in a state to be seen. When there was no objection, the door opened the rest of the way, revealing…

“Sonic,” Amy breathed, getting up from her bed and quickly pulling him inside, shutting the door behind her. She pulled him into a tight hug. “Oh, I’ve missed you so much.”

“Likewise, Princess,” Sonic said, burying his muzzle into Amy’s shoulder. They stood like that for a few minutes before finally pulling apart.

She took a look at him. A long, hard look.

He was exhausted. The bags under his eyes were incredibly dark, as if he hadn’t slept properly or rested much within the past seven days. There was a healing cut on his cheek, and his armor—once shiny, newly-forged steel to replace his old armor after it was damaged during their travels—had a massive gash down the center of the chestplate. Whatever hit Sonic took, if he hadn’t had the armor, it would have killed him.

“You look awful,” Amy stated, and Sonic chuckled.

“I’m okay,” He said.

Amy smiled and shook her head. He was always the type to try and stay strong, optimistic.

“What happened?” She asked, brushing her thumb across his cheek, just below the wound.

“Badnik encounter.”

“My father… He wants you executed. Why’d you run off like that? I thought you’d gotten a mission from him! You should have waited and talked to me, I would have given you the proper authorization!”

“There was no time to lose,” he whispered.

The Princess sighed. She cradled his face in her palm, leaning in and kissing him, just for a moment. She couldn’t help herself, she missed his embrace.

“He knows about us,” Amy said as she pulled away. “I almost had him convinced I was perhaps courting some noble… but then he saw your scarf.”

Sonic cursed under his breath. “I meant to bring that with me. If I hadn’t forgotten it—”

Amy gently shushed him. “Don’t even start trying to blame yourself.”

Sonic chuckled, but it sounded... hollow. Tired. Stressed?

“Let’s get you out of your armor,” Amy breathed, reaching out and beginning to undo the clasps that attached the metal to his body. She set the armor down on the floor just off to the side.

“Lay with me,” She whispered, gently pulling him over to her bed. He climbed up beside her wordlessly, laying face-down.

Amy did not lay down right away, instead sitting beside him, reaching down to massage his back. She couldn’t help but notice the dark bruises that just peeked out from under his fur, the way his muscles were tense and most certainly sore. He closed his eyes and purred.

When he drifted off to sleep (which didn’t take long), she snuggled up close to him and pulled the sheets and blankets over the two of them. He rolled onto his side in his sleep, his hands wrapping around her, and she rested her forehead against his chest.


	18. OCCUPIED MOBIUS, Act 2

She did not wake until long after the sun had risen the next morning.

“Hey,” Amy whispered, gently nudging Sonic when she awoke. He grumbled softly, still half asleep, pulling Amy closer to him. She giggled. “You have to get up, silly.”

Hazy, unfocused eyes slowly drifted open, and Amy smiled. “Come on, sleepyhead,” She cooed, stroking her fingers through long blue quills, “I’d love to stay here with you forever, but you… should get out of here, before anyone sees you.”

“Ugh,” Sonic groaned reluctantly, “Yeah.”

He forced himself up and off Amy’s bed, and it was clear as day that every muscle in his body was protesting. As soon as he was standing, he went to stretch his arms, his legs, jogging in place for a moment; to wake himself up. Amy sat up and watched curiously as he kicked his armor unceremoniously underneath her bed. She had been expecting him to put it back on (though, with the structural integrity of the chestplate severely compromised, Amy supposed it wasn’t necessarily worth keeping).

“I don’t need it,” He said simply when he noticed she’d been watching.

“Why not?”

“Uh—” he stammered, frowning. “It’s, um…”

Amy sighed. “There’s something you’re not telling me. I… I won’t press you now, but know that I want answers. I _expect_ answers.”

“Yes, Your Highness,” Sonic replied. He grabbed his scarf off Amy’s desk, then slid open the window, climbing up onto the ledge.

“I’ll see you again soon,” He said, giving her a playful salute before leaning back and letting himself fall. Amy gasped and ran to the window, looking downwards outside… But Sonic was nowhere to be seen. He’d likely swung under some ledge a floor below and out of her line of sight.

Amy couldn’t help but laugh. He’d always been dramatic.

She leaned her elbows against the windowsill. Birds chirped happily nearby and a gentle breeze ruffled her quills. If the circumstances were any different, she’d think it a beautiful day; perhaps go on a picnic out in the fields with Sonic. However, watching the ground below as Knuckles’ regiment of soldiers got warmed up and ready for a day full of hard work, she couldn’t help but feel sad to see such a beautiful day go wasted. 

She spotted the golden-armored Wind Spirit sitting at the base of a nearby tree. Through it all, the incarnate looked… relaxed. At least he wasn’t letting the beautiful weather go to waste—she watched as some soldier ran up to the Wind Spirit, gesturing her hands urgently. The Wind Spirit perked up, then was quickly on his feet and running off with the soldier in the direction of whatever threat he had to deal with. The ability to enjoy the morning, gone.

Such was the nature of war, she supposed. She slid her window shut and headed to the throne room, followed by Gadget, to spend another day shut away indoors arguing with her father.

“The King of Ark is here,” Her father said to her as she entered the throne room. “Today I’d like you to help him oversee the distribution of his soldiers into our ranks.”

“Yes, father,” Amy said—she couldn’t help but find herself relieved to hear she wouldn’t be spending the day cooped up in the throne room after all. Though, she’d be working closely with King Shadow, and he was certainly known to be… difficult. And quite intimidating.

She turned on her heels and made her way out of the throne room to find Shadow… wherever he was.

“Have you met King Shadow, Gadget?” Amy asked.

“N-no, Your Highness,” He replied.

“He’s, uh… he’s a bit intense, I’m warning you now—but I think he’ll be a massive help in ending this war quickly.”

She found Shadow on the training grounds’ observation platform, watching a few Mobius soldiers practice fighting techniques.

“Hi,” She greeted as she approached him from behind. Black ears flicked in her direction, but he didn’t otherwise move, his attention on the knights below. She wondered what he was thinking. Mobius was the second-strongest nation; did her soldiers meet his standards?

“Hmph.”

“I’m here to help you integrate your soldiers,” She stated, standing beside the King, leaning her arms on the platform’s wooden railing and watching as one Mobius knight knocked another to the ground with a swift, but gentle, kick to the chest. The knight then approached her fallen sparring partner and extended a hand to help him up to his feet.

“I don’t need help.”

“Too bad.”

The charcoal-furred hedgehog finally glanced over at her, quirking his brow. Amy’s stubbornness, which her father always considered to be a fault, came in handy.

“Show me what you’ve got,” the Princess said. 

Shadow reached out and grabbed her by the arm. She gasped at the unexpected movement, but wasn’t given any time to protest before a flash of white light, a strange dizzying feeling, and—

She and Shadow no longer stood on the observation deck, instead in a large field dotted with wildflowers.

“Wha—” Amy started, but Shadow waved his hand dismissively.

“Chaos energy,” He said. “Everyone has it, it’s just a matter of having the ability to utilize it.”

“My knight—”

Shadow sighed, and in a blip of light he vanished, showing up seconds later with Gadget in tow. 

“You okay?” She asked Gadget, and he took a moment to steady himself before giving her a curt nod.

“Right now,” Shadow said, “We stand outside the border of your Kingdom. There—” He gestured his hand towards a camp of soldiers clad in white and blue armor, “Is where my soldiers are staying.”

The camp was massive. Rows upon rows of animal-skin tents created a massive grid of temporary lodging. Soldiers milled about; cooking food, sharpening their weapons, jogging laps around the camp’s perimeter.

Amy turned around to face her Kingdom. It was quite a ways away, nearly on the horizon, but for the first time she got a good sense of just how strong Robotnik’s hold on the border was. Though they were not much more than tiny specks in the distance, Amy saw just how many badniks surrounded her Kingdom; truly, nobody would be getting in or out without Shadow’s power. She hoped the Ark soldiers would be able to break through that perimeter.

“I will not be integrating my knights into your Kingdom,” Shadow said, and Amy turned around once more to face the camp. Amy opened her mouth to argue, but the northern King continued speaking. “Splitting up means weaker ranks, and getting them into the Kingdom in the first place would be a massive hassle. So, instead, I posit you this; we determine a date and time to rush the Kingdom and overwhelm Robotnik.”

“Huh,” Amy said, “That could… work. If we get Sol and Apotos to join in, too…” She trailed off. Perhaps just Sol; Apotos was too far to get an army here in time, and besides, Queen Vanilla had prided herself on her peaceful kingdom. There was not much to offer as far as military strength.

“Two days from now,” Shadow asserted, “At sunrise.”

Amy held out her hand and Shadow took it, giving her a firm handshake.

“Why did you decide to ally with us?” Amy asked a few moments later.

“I…” Shadow sighed. “I was allied with Robotnik, once. A long time ago. He promised peace and freedom for all; and I, a young King, believed him. He… he ended up taking the life of someone very important to me.”

“You want revenge,” Amy said softly.

“Hm.”

In the fading light of late afternoon, after spending the day working with Shadow on the details of the battle plan, Amy was back in the Mobius throne room. She had reported her conclusion to her father, who (just as she expected) was not pleased to hear she had made battle plans with Shadow instead of bringing his soldiers into the Kingdom. Why he was so resistant to directly fight back was beyond her— a peaceful resolution was out of the question!

Along with reluctantly reporting to her father, she passed the information along to both Vanilla and Blaze. Just as she expected, Vanilla was unable to get her soldiers here in time, as travel to and from her Kingdom took a week in each direction. Blaze was eager to help, so Shadow teleported her past Robotnik’s perimeter of badniks so that she could get her soldiers ready.

Vanilla, meanwhile, drafted up a letter and set a courier by way of Apotos, requesting from Vector—her next-in-command and current babysitter of her young daughter Cream—to begin gathering food and supplies to be sent to Mobius once Robotnik was eradicated from the territory.

Amy spent the evening searching for the Wind Spirit. When she finally found him laying at the base of the same tree he was at this morning, with his hands tucked back behind his armored quills, she informed him of the battle plans as well.

Things were looking up. In two days’ time, Robotnik would be gone from Mobius, and they could work towards going on the offense.

When Amy returned to the throne room once more, she found herself standing facing her father upon the throne; and beside her father stood Big the Cat. Amy’s heart dropped to her stomach and she wrung her hands nervously.

“Amy,” The King said, “I am going forth with making plans for your marriage to Big.”

“Father!” Amy exclaimed, “We’re in the middle of a _war!_ Now is not the time to be thinking about marriage—!”

“I have given you more than enough time to find a… _suitable_ partner. You have refused. Time is up; expect to be married the day Robotnik is removed from our Kingdom.”

“Big?” Amy asked, looking over at the large violet cat, “What do you think about this?”

“I think it’s neat,” Big said slowly with a shrug. “Froggy can live in the castle.”

Amy did nothing to stifle her frustrated groan. Big was by no means fit to be a King! He was a friendly guy, but was dense, slow, and knew next to nothing about politics or war.

“I do not consent to this marriage,” Amy said defiantly, narrowing her eyes at her father. “I am a twenty-three years old. An adult! If you wanted to marry me off without giving me a say in the matter, you should have done so when I was seventeen!”

When Sonic snuck into her quarters that night, she cried into his arms. Hysterical sobs racked her shaking body as she clung to her ex-knight, her lover, the one where her heart truly belonged…

“I’ll fix this,” Sonic whispered in her ear. “I’ll do everything in my power to make it right.”

But what power did he have?

Sonic was gone when she awoke the next morning. She forced herself out of bed and roamed the castle halls, dragging her feet. She waved her hand half-heartedly to signal to Gadget to remain by her quarters for the time being; and he stayed put; he was certainly much more cautious about her boundaries since being reinstated as her knight.

She skipped breakfast, her appetite destroyed after the soul-crushing events of the prior evening.

“…Your Majesty, if I may be so bold…” a voice floated through the halls, its point of origin being the board room. It was a voice she recognized; it was—

Sonic’s voice.

Amy perked up, picking up the pace until she was running down the hall and closing the distance between herself and the board room. What was Sonic doing? The King wanted him dead, he was going to get himself killed! She needed to be there to help him—

But when she reached the board room and peeked through the doorway, she didn’t see Sonic at all. The only souls in the room were the King, the Wind Spirit, and a few members of the King’s personal guard.

“Mind your own business,” The King spat at the Wind Spirit, and Amy couldn’t help but feel rage bubble up inside her over the way he treated him. But, nonetheless, Amy kept herself low, hidden behind the doorframe, as she listened to the conversation.

“Call off the wedding,” The Wind Spirit demanded. This was the first time she’d heard him speak, and _oh, Chaos,_ his voice sounded exactly like Sonic’s. Her heart pounded in her chest. “You are being nothing but cruel and unjust towards your own daughter.”

_This_ was what he wasn’t telling her. _This_ was why he’d been so exhausted, drained, worn-down, so flighty and rather quiet…

“I only want what’s best for her.”

“If that were the case, you’d listen to her!” The Wind Spirit—Sonic—was angry. She’d never heard so harsh a tone in Sonic’s voice before. “She cried herself to sleep last night over a marriage she wants no part of!”

“I gave her plenty of time to pick a suitor. Years.”

“And she picked one.”

“She picked a pathetic, worthless knight,” The King growled, “Not worthy of the Throne!”

“Pathetic? Worthless?” The Wind Spirit laughed bitterly. “I’d be careful who you’re saying that to.”

“Who _am_ I saying it to, Wind Spirit? You have yet to show your face in my Kingdom.”

“I highly doubt you want to know,” The Wind Spirit teased with a shrug. Despite his obvious anger at the King, his voice sounded… playful.

“Remove your helmet,” The King demanded.

“Are you sure about that?”

“That is an order, soldier.”

The Wind Spirit turned his back to her father. “I’ll give you one more chance to change your mind,” he said.

“Remove. Your. Helmet.”

And so, the hero’s armored helmet dissipated into the air, revealing vibrant blue quills, a cheeky grin tossed over his shoulder at the King.

Amy’s father stared in shock; shock turned to horror, then anger, and it wasn’t long before he ordered his knights to apprehend Sonic.

Sonic did nothing to resist as the knights roughly turned him to face the King once more, shoving him down to his knees and restraining him there. All the while, he smiled. Why was he smiling? Amy tensed, ready to run into the room to his rescue at any moment.

“What are you going to do, Your Majesty?” Sonic asked, “Kill me?”

“I would be more than happy to be rid of you permanently,” The King growled in return, “Street scum.”

Was that why her father disliked Sonic so much? Because he just happened to have grown up without a proper roof over his head? That someone of such a lowly birth status was unfit to be a Wind Spirit incarnate? Amy was furious. Her personal affections for Sonic aside, avoiding the prejudices of the upper class was the entire (theorized) reason why the Spirit did not reincarnate into royalty. 

“Just one request,” Sonic said. “At my execution, let me wear my armor. Y’know, ceremonially? Also, so everybody in the Kingdom knows you’re executing the Wind Spirit, which will trigger the reincarnation and lead to Mobius losing the war against Eggman…”

Amy’s father gritted his teeth. “Then I won’t execute you,” he drawled, “I’ll just lock you away for life—”

“Oh!” Sonic exclaimed happily, “So I can rot away in a cell while you lose the war?”

The King did not reply.

“Your Majesty, with all due respect,” Sonic continued, gazing up unintimidated at the imposing King, “You know who else wants me dead? Robotnik. If you want me to face a similar fate, I can only assume you are on his side.”

“I am no ally to Robotnik,” The King defended himself.

“Then act like it.”

Amy decided it was time to make herself known. She walked into the room. “Father,” She said, “Remember what I told you a month ago, just before I departed for Sol?”

The King looked over at Amy with an inquisitive expression, though said nothing. Likely, he didn’t remember.

“You asserted that you wanted me to marry Big,” She continued, circling around her father until she found a spot to stand protectively between him and Sonic. “I said I would await the emergence of the Wind Spirit before making a marriage decision.”

“Checkmate,” Sonic said, and while she had her back to him, she could practically hear the grin on his face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> y'know, it's funny. This fic has completely derailed from my original plan at this point, but ya know what? I'm not even mad. I was trying so hard to nudge it back in the direction i initially wanted it to go, but the story doesn't wanna go that way. That's writing, b a b e y!


	19. OCCUPIED MOBIUS, Act 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> not a TON of plot today, this chapter's been wrestling with me quite a bit so I ended up doing somethin soft and a couple much-needed conversations. enjoy!

Amy was _furious_ with Sonic.

“Wh-why?” Gadget asked after Amy expressed this aloud, as she stomped through the castle hallways at some point in the early afternoon.

“Because he’s—Ugh!!” She nearly yelled, throwing her arms out into the air in frustration, “First, he vanishes without anything more than leaving a letter. Then, he returns, and acts all cryptic and vague! Meanwhile I’m worried sick about him because he’s injured, exhausted, and my father wants him dead, and it turns out this whole time _he_ was the damn Wind Spirit—”

She punched the wall beside her, sending a loud thud resounding through the hallway. Gadget flinched.

“And then, to top it all off, after his idiotic _dramatic reveal_ or whatever, pissing off my dad even further—the man already hates him, mind you—he just runs off again! I get that he’s busy, but he could have at least stopped to, I don’t know, _talk_ about all this!?”

Amy was ready to rip all her quills out. Her father still refused to call off the wedding, which wasn’t helping the matter, and Sonic was only safe for now. Who knew what her father would try to do to him after to war was over…

She stopped walking and sighed loudly, taking a moment to pull a vibrant red curtain away from a large window. She gazed outside with a deep breath, taking in the luscious green scenery that lay just outside the castle. She’d have a conversation with Sonic next time she saw him. Perhaps tonight. After all, he’d made a routine of sleeping just beside her every night as of late—but would he come to her quarters tonight, with the allied strike against Robotnik just around the corner? Would he sleep at all?

 _If he doesn’t come,_ She thought, _I’ll go find him and drag him to bed myself._

Leave it to him to forego his own basic needs in order to protect others. She groaned, leaning her forehead against the window and closing her eyes. How dare he be so—so selfless, so caring and loyal to those around him, so _perfect for the job_ …

She could feel frustration rising up inside her again. She took a deep breath, composed herself, then continued her walk down the corridor and, ultimately, out of the castle.

After about an hour of wandering through some of Sonic’s favorite spots on the castle grounds, she found him in the otherwise empty training grounds, adorned in his Wind Spirit armor sans the helmet. He wore his scarf draped around his shoulders atop the armor, and it flowed gently in the breeze. He was throwing punches at a training dummy, though they looked weak and half-hearted. It was almost as if he was training just for the sake of keeping himself busy, despite how evidently worn out he was.

He seemed quite dazed; he didn’t even seem to notice her approach until she put her hand on his arm, startling him. She intertwined her fingers with his, gently guiding him away from the training dummy.

“Come with me,” She said so quietly it was only just above a whisper. Her frustration with him had faded pretty much entirely for the time being, replaced with concern.

Even in the middle of a war, a soldier needed time off.

Sonic’s armor vanished in a small flash of magical light. She guided him back into the castle, walking hand-in-hand through the weaving hallways until they reached the kitchen. Instructing Gadget to stand guard by the doorway, she pushed the door open and walked inside, waving for the cooks and servants in the room to leave. 

The kitchen was a pristine place, with striking white marble countertops and neatly organized wooden storage crates full of various spices and supplies. It was well lit, with large windows in the roof to provide for ample sunlight. Off to the northern wall was a short corridor that led to a large walk-in pantry where meats, fruits, and vegetables were stored on iron shelves. The kitchen was spacious, with plenty of room to move around—so the cooks could work comfortably. Some of the countertops housed cooking pots and washbuckets, while some where left empty for room to work. Along the eastern wall was a large brick oven, inside of which a fire burned to keep it hot.

“Do you know how to bake, Sonic?” Amy asked, heaving a sack of flour up onto the counter.

“Bake?” Sonic repeated, “No, Your Highness.”

“Well, there’s a first time for everything,” she hummed, grabbing a sack of sugar and bringing it up onto the counter just beside the flour. “You need to rest, and I want to spend time with you, so we’re going to bake a cake.”

Sonic looked stunned. “But what about the war—”

“Don’t even start,” Amy said. “Go over to the pantry and get two eggs, will you?”

Sonic headed to the back, disappearing into the pantry and returning a moment later with one egg in each hand. He set them on the counter beside the sack of sugar. 

“My father has been sending you on job after job ever since you arrived,” Amy continued, “And when you aren’t on some mission, you’re training. I’ve just about had it with you, Sonic, you need a break!”

“Yes, Your Highness,” He replied.

“Here,” Amy said, pushing a bowl over to him, “Crack those eggs into this. Don’t get any of the shell in it.”

While Amy measured out the flour, Sonic clumsily cracked the eggs into the bowl, spending the subsequent few minutes painstakingly fishing shell fragments out.

“How about cooking? Have you cooked anything before?” Amy asked.

“Yes,” Sonic said, “I’m no good at it, but I know basics from… before I met Tails and Knuckles. Heating up food over a fire to kill the germs in it.”

“That must have been rough,” Amy breathed. She felt a pang of sadness—if he hadn’t been abandoned at birth, he wouldn’t have needed to fight to survive, he would have known he was the Wind Spirit incarnate…

(She felt a surge of anger at Aleena.)

Amy poured sugar into the bowl with the eggs, followed by butter. “Mix this up,” Amy said, “Until it’s nice and fluffy.”

When the wet mixture was ready, Amy poured the dry ingredients in. She handed Sonic a cake pan, which she instructed him to grease with butter.

“Make sure you get into the corners really well,” Amy said as she stirred together the batter, “We don’t want the cake to stick.”

She couldn’t help but notice that Sonic was particularly quiet through it all. He didn’t even so much as tap his foot, either; and if there was one thing she knew about Sonic, it was that if he was quiet and still, something wasn’t right.

“We need to talk,” Amy said as she put the cake in the brick oven.

“Yeah,” Sonic breathed, grabbing a stool and pulling it over to the opposite side of the counter, sitting down on it.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” She asked.

“I was afraid,” He admitted, “That something may happen—Eggman, he’s—He’s after the Wind Spirit. Uh—Me. And I wasn’t sure if… if he’d try to use you to get to me. I figured maybe if I kept quiet, even from you, that’d lower the chances of you getting roped in—”

“I’m the Princess,” Amy said. “I’ll get roped into things no matter what.”

“I was also…” He faltered for a moment, “I’m afraid of what being the Wind Spirit _means_.”

“So you tried to separate it from your personal identity,” She inferred, “by playing the role of ‘mysterious warrior,’ doing nothing but working your tail off. Distracting yourself from the fact that you and the Wind Spirit are one and the same.”

He sighed, averting his eyes.

“Sonic—”

“This war is my fault,” he blurted out, his voice cracking just slightly. “If I had only known, I—I could have stopped Eggman sooner, lives wouldn’t have been lost. I have to keep training, I have to be ready to fix my failures, I—”

“It’s not your fault,” Amy said quietly, “You didn’t know.”

“That’s the problem, Ames,” He asserted with a frown. “What kind of Wind Spirit doesn’t know they’re the Wind Spirit? Even the historically worst incarnations, at least they _knew_ it was them! I… I didn’t even know such a thing existed until long after the youth signs faded!”

Amy walked around to his side of the counter and wrapped her arms around him, pulling him close. He closed his eyes and leaned his head on her shoulder.

“ _We cannot be weighed down by something we cannot control,_ ” Amy whispered, recalling Sonic’s words atop the northern mountains after being shut out of the Kingdom of Ark. “Keep your head up, Sonic. You’ll do great things, I guarantee it.”

She pulled away from the hug and smiled at him, then went and grabbed another stool. Sitting down beside him, she took his hands into hers.

“Why’d you disappear after the confrontation with my father?”

“I, uh, was worried you’d get mad.”

“Oh, I was furious,” Amy said, and Sonic chuckled nervously, his ears canted backwards just slightly.

When it was time to remove the cake from the oven, Amy put on some thick padded gloves and pulled the hot pan out of the oven, setting it down atop a cloth on the counter. As the cake cooled, Sonic told her in detail about what happened out in Mystic Jungle; about how the trip to the museum’s vault was the catalyst. 

As he spoke, she gave him a close examination. Without his armor on, he wore just his scarf, gloves, and shoes, so she thumbed her fingers through his fur and identified any hidden bruises, cuts and scrapes she could find. She discovered a few bruises poking through the fur on his knees, ribs, and one on his cheek, but nothing major enough to be cause of concern.

Amy grabbed the sack of sugar and poured some into a bowl, wetting it with just a few drops of water until it coalesced into a fluffy frosting.

“What color do you want the cake to be?” Amy asked. 

“Hm,” Sonic hummed thoughtfully, getting up from his stool to join her in icing the cake. “Red?”

Amy ran to the pantry and grabbed some red dye.

“It may turn out pink,” She said, mixing the dye into the icing, “red is a hard color to nail down.”

“It’ll match your fur, then.”

Amy giggled. Sure enough, the frosting turned out a few shades darker pink than her fur color; getting it any redder would involve likely dumping all the dye into it, and she felt that to be a waste. So, she and Sonic got to work icing the cake. It certainly wasn’t a professional job. The icing was messy, mostly due to Sonic’s clumsiness with spreading it, though Amy did her best to smooth out as many of the imperfections as she could. She certainly wasn’t as skilled as the cooks that worked here; it was just a hobby.

Amy cut two slices of cake and dished it out onto plates, handing one to Sonic.

“To the Wind Spirit,” she cheered, raising her plate into the air before taking a bite of her slice.

“To the Wind Spirit,” Sonic echoed.

Amy left the rest of the cake as a gift to the hardworking kitchen staff. After all, when was the last time they got something nice? Her father certainly didn’t care enough about that sort of thing. 

Though the Princess insisted that the Wind Spirit get some much needed rest, Sonic insisted on making a stop at the blacksmith “on the way there.”

As if the blacksmith weren’t on the opposite side of the castle as Amy’s quarters.

But, Amy figured he was due for a visit with his best friend, so she allowed it, on the strict condition that he’d go straight to her quarters—to _their_ quarters—immediately afterwards. He laughed and offered her an obedient “Yes, Your Highness,” as they walked through the castle corridors.

After all this time, he still hadn’t broken the habit of calling her that.

Though, there was a certain air to the way he said ‘Your Highness’ that didn’t feel so strict and formal, but rather, a term of endearment.

“Tails!” Sonic sang with a grin as he waltzed into the blacksmith’s workshop, the Princess just behind him. 

“Sonic!” Tails all but yelled, dropping the badnik carcass he had been tinkering with and running over to the hedgehog. Before Sonic even had time to register what was happening, the fox nearly tackled him in a hug; Sonic lost his balance momentarily at the sudden impact. Amy giggled softly as she watched the two boys.

“I’ve been worried sick about you!” Tails said as he pulled away from the hug, “Are you okay? Has the King seen you yet?”

“Oh, I’ve met with the King, alright,” Sonic said with a chuckle. “He can’t kill me.”

“What’s _that_ supposed to mean?”

“Anyways, buddy,” Sonic said, changing the subject, “I hope you don’t intend on keeping up that habit of surviving on only naps in your workshop.”

Tails faltered for a moment.

“The Wind Spirit told you, didn’t he? Ugh, I told him not to…” Tails grumbled.

“Nah,” Sonic said with a shrug. “You told me.”

“I—What? When?” Tails exclaimed, flustered. 

Sonic didn’t respond, simply gazing at his younger brother with a smile. A moment passed. Two. Amy could practically see the gears turning in the fox’s head.

“Oh, _Chaos,_ ” Tails suddenly said, eyes wide. “Why—Why didn’t you _tell me,_ you idiot?!?”

Sonic laughed, leaning over and bracing his hands on his knees.

“I’m mad at you,” Tails said, but it was clear the blacksmith wasn’t truly angry; if anything, just mildly exasperated. “Sit down, tell me everything.”

“Ah-ah-ah!” Sonic chided, “Miss Rose gave me strict orders to get some rest. I suggest you do the same.”

Tails opened his mouth to speak.

“And not on that cot,” Sonic interjected, “When was the last time you got a full night’s sleep? Y’know, _in your quarters?_ ”

“Okay, okay, fine. Point taken.”

When Amy and Sonic later arrived at her bedchamber, Sonic pretty much immediately flopped down on the mattress. She’d noticed how he started to drag his feet as he walked, so she wasn’t at all surprised when he was almost immediately asleep. Amy gently unwrapped the scarf from his neck and removed his shoes, tucking him in under the covers.

She then sat down at her desk, reviewing her plans for the near future. After all, the offensive strike against Robotnik was right around the corner, and she still needed to figure out how to convince her father to cancel the wedding with Big.

She tugged at her quills. There was a lot of work to do.


	20. OCCUPIED MOBIUS, Act 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOOOOOOOOOOOOOO CHAPTER 20 HERE WE GOOOOOOOOO!!!

It was cold, the morning of the battle. While the past few days had been much more temperate, albeit on the cool side, the winter winds were beginning to push their way through the central grasslands that housed the Kingdom of Mobius. Sonic had endured many a winter outdoors, from his lonesome youth to jumping from makeshift shelter to makeshift shelter with Knuckles and Tails. While he would prefer the warmth of the summertime, a battle to this caliber was certainly doable; as he and the rest of the soldiers moved, they would warm up.

The soldiers of Ark were of course in their element, having endured and adapted to much colder conditions. The soldiers of the desert kingdom Sol were most certainly uneasy.

In the early pre-dawn air stood regiments of soldiers; approximately three quarters of Mobius’ entire army. Rows upon rows of knights, each sectioned off by their units and accompanied by their Captains, stood at attention and awaited their signal to jump into action.

The plan? Catch Eggman by surprise in an ambush, destroy the baniks he had deployed into the Kingdom, and drive the man out for good. The scouting regiment had identified Eggman’s base of operations to be a large half-constructed storehouse off to the southwest, right near the border of the Kingdom.

The final quarter of the Mobius royal guard would stay at the castle to protect the nobility and royalty, all hunkered down in a secret room to stay safe.

Amy had wanted to join the battle. It took Sonic quite a bit of convincing to get her to stay within the castle; though he wondered if she would try to sneak out and join in on the action. She certainly was the type. Part of Sonic, admittedly, yearned for her presence at his side. She was a capable fighter, strong and hot-headed, determined and fierce. But not only that; she was a feeling of home, warmth, reassurance.

Standing in front of the rows upon rows of soldiers and clad in his Wind Spirit armor (minus the helmet; now that the King and Amy knew his identity, there was no point in hiding his face), he jogged in place. 

King Shadow was to give the signal. Where was he? What was he waiting for? Sonic was ready to go, go, _go!_

“Any news?” He asked as Knuckles joined him.

“None so far,” The echidna replied. 

Knuckles, bless his heart, had been considerably shocked to find out Sonic was the Wind Spirit. Shocked—but then proud, excited.

(“Look at you, buddy!” Sonic’s older brother had said with a hardy laugh, “I knew you’d be something great someday.”)

Just before the sun began it’s ascent over the horizon to shed its warm morning light upon the Kingdom, Shadow appeared out of thin air. Sonic thought it was really, _really_ cool that he could just _do_ that. Was he an incarnation of another deity? No—the only deity that gave up Her immortal form was the Wind Spirit.

“Everything is in place,” Shadow reported, “Sol and Ark are standing by. Wind Spirit, you’re up. Don’t forget to fire off the signal when you arrive.”

Sonic saluted playfully. “Don’t be late!” He teased.

“…Same to you.” Shadow growled. “Get going.”

Sonic didn’t need to be told twice. With a powerful gust of wind he was gone, sprinting through the winding streets of Mobius. The training and work he’d done after returning to his hometown had taught him one valuable thing: with the support of the wind, he could run faster than even a horse.

And it was a _thrill_.

In just under a minute, he found himself on the far southwest end of Mobius, standing just in front of the storehouse that Eggman had decided to call his home.

He summoned a bow, watching as it appeared in his hand (he seriously couldn’t get over how _cool_ it was to have _magical weapons_ ), and aimed it to the sky. Out of his quiver he grabbed an arrow made of pure light, nocked it, and shot it up into the sky: the signal that he had arrived at his destination. 

A few minutes would pass after the arrow flew, then Ark and Sol’s soldiers would rush the badnik perimeter with Mobius’s assistance. Shadow would join him for backup at Eggman’s hideout. But for now, he had some time alone; time that he needed in order to properly utilize the element of surprise.

Sonic leapt into action, hopping up atop a tall structural support beam protruding up from the ground. It offered him a clear vantage point to see into the partially-constructed space. Aside from a few unmoving badniks (likely in standby mode), the space appeared empty.

“I hope we didn’t plan this right when he was making a grocery run,” Sonic quipped to himself, jumping down from the support beam into the building below. He landed on the ground with a soft _clank_ of his armor and took a moment to look around.

The place was nearly empty. If he hadn’t seen the decommissioned badniks, or the bales of straw lined with blankets to use as a temporary bed; and had he not smelled the residual scent of smoke, he would have thought this to be the wrong location, that perhaps the scouts hadn’t been correct.

But, no, this was undoubtedly the right place.

“Yo, Eggy!” Sonic called out, taking a step forward. “Come on out—”

His foot snagged something. He glanced down. 

A tripwire.

To any onlooker, had there been any around, the ensuing events would have happened in nearly a blink of an eye.

First: About a dozen pairs of lights flickered on, like glowing eyes in the dark. The ‘decommissioned badniks’, when the tripwire was pulled, sprang to life, aimed their crossbows and rockets, then fired simultaneously. 

Sonic’s shield manifested in his hands. One, two, three, four, five, six crossbow bolts impacted with the metal, ricocheting to the ground. He dove to the ground just in time to dodge the first propelled explosive, which detonated on the other end of the room with an ear-shattering boom. The second one impacted a support beam off to his right, knocking it loose from the ground and collapsing that side of the building. A third detonation, to his left, sent shrapnel flying everywhere, causing Sonic to duck under his shield and raise his helmet to keep himself safe. In the midst of the explosion, one crossbow bolt impacted in a small gap in his armor just under his ribs, and he yelped; the final two crossbow bolts clattered harmlessly against the floor.

He ripped the crossbow bolt out of where it had managed to hit him, tossing it off to the side and ignoring the small bit of blood that now stained his armor as well as the floor. It hadn’t gone deep; he was fine.

Second: As Sonic looked around him, noting that all these badniks had been destroyed, something didn’t quite sit right.

This wasn’t Robotnik’s defense line. This was a distraction. Eggman knew those badniks would get destroyed.

It was the sound of whirring metal that solidified this in his mind. He glanced upwards to find a large machine built into the ceiling. The loud explosions masked the sound of this contraption powering up, and by the time Sonic realized what was going on, it was far too late.

Four metal pillars slammed into the ground, connecting at the base on each side, forming a box without walls around Sonic. The floor he was standing on (curse his inattentiveness, he should have identified such a red flag) was a square panel of steel.

 _Sad excuse for a trap,_ Sonic found himself thinking, as he could easily just hop through the large open spaces on each side of him. He took a step across the metal flooring towards one of the open walls, ready to hop out and make his escape—

When a surge of electricity plunged down the poles at each corner, connecting with the metal panel he stood upon, sending who-knew-how-many volts surging through the Wind Spirit’s body. He screamed, falling to his hands and knees, though the increased contact with the metal flooring did nothing to help him.

The shock subsided and Sonic let his armor dissipate completely, exposing his fur to the frigid air. The magical armor, which usually felt weightless as opposed to standard steel armor, felt heavy and constricting, taking far too much effort to keep summoned as his chest heaved and he gasped for air.

Through the ringing in his ears, Sonic made out a distinct and recognizable laugh. He pushed himself to his feet, his body trembling, protesting.

“You didn’t expect me to make this _easy_ for you, did you?” Eggman cackled, his boots resounding against the floor with a soft _clak, clak, clak._

“You—” Sonic began as he got his wits about him, “You knew about—”

“Of course I did, rodent! The whole plan, from start to finish.”

“You have an informant,” Sonic gathered, gazing up at the human. 

(Humans were strange, rare creatures. Not many were left in the world; Sonic knew of only a few for certain. Eggman, a young boy born of rich nobility on the east end of Mobius, and a professor down in Apotos, who specialized in studying the Wind Spirit. He’d heard stories of a young woman who once lived in Ark, too; perhaps even related to Eggman in some way. As rumor had it, she was terminally ill, and murdered in cold blood.)

“Look at you, rat,” Eggman jeered, “Using that tiny little brain of yours.”

“Can it, Egghead,” Sonic growled, “Your reign of terror is over.”

“You know,” Dr. Robotnik continued, “I expected the Wind Spirit to be, idunno, less pathetic than you—”

Sonic had enough. Once the shock of, well, being shocked, had passed, he charged forward, tackling Eggman to the ground. It wouldn’t be long before Shadow arrived as backup. After all, all the guy had to do was authorize the assault at the borders… where was he?

He tried not to think too hard on what kind of damage this strange lightning caused to his body as he wrestled with the Doctor. He heard Eggman shout as Sonic’s sharp quills sliced open his arm—Ah, right, he hadn’t re-summoned his armor yet.

Eggman snapped his fingers and a large badnik appeared (where had it come from?), grabbing Sonic and throwing him roughly into an adjacent wall; a force strong enough that the bricks cracked and crumbled around him. He shouted in pain, trying his best to ignore whatever that sickly _crack_ he heard was.

Had he had his armor on, he would have been perfectly fine.

He resummoned his armor and took a deep breath—why did it hurt to breathe?—and braced himself for the ensuing fight. He summoned his sword and gripped it in both of his trembling hands, ready to fight this badnik. It was about as tall as Sonic would be if he were sitting atop Knuckles’ shoulders; so it wasn’t the biggest badnik he’d faced off against, but it was sizeable enough.

A flash of movement caught his attention in his peripheral. Eggman, having sicced the badnik on him as a distraction, was taking the opportunity to make his escape.

_No! No, no, no!_

Shadow appeared in a flash of light, which Sonic was eternally grateful for. The northern King quickly decimated the badnik that Sonic was currently cornered by.

“Took you long enough!” Sonic teased as he hurried off in pursuit of Eggman. 

He had to stop the man before he could make his escape. If he couldn’t get the man out of Mobius, what kind of Wind Spirit would he be? He already failed to save Mobius at the beginning of this whole war, simply by not knowing he was the Wind Spirit. He wasn’t going to let himself fail again.

Shadow followed Sonic out of the building, appearing in front of Eggman—in between him and the road that would serve as his escape route.

“Surrender,” Shadow growled, pointing his blade at Eggman, “And we’ll go easy on you.”

Eggman seemed to know he was in a tough spot. He looked nervous; after all, his plan to wipe out Mobius’ citizens and kill the Wind Spirit had entirely failed. His desperate grasp on the Kingdom was destroyed by the neighboring armies. The Wind Spirit emerged and confronted him, and while Eggman had the upper hand for a moment, it slipped through his fingers.

“I will never surrender,” Eggman said menacingly, regaining his composure, “I already won. I will make my leave now; but mark my words, I will be back.”

“If I were you,” Sonic growled, “I wouldn’t return at all.”

Shadow rushed at Eggman, leapt, and delivered a roundhouse kick to the human’s head, sending him stumbling backwards. The man growled, turned on his heels, then ran towards the Kingdom’s border, back towards his own territory to the west.

“Okay, Knux. Give me the full report,” Sonic breathed as he and Shadow returned to the Kingdom proper. Such a trip back through the kingdom would take half an hour for any typical traveler, but for the Wind Spirit it took perhaps a minute and a half. Shadow, Sonic discovered, kept up with him due to utilizing some sort of high-tech rocket shoes. He couldn’t help but think about how Tails would have a field day researching how those things worked, if he got the chance.

Shadow, actually, was trying to push marginally faster, jeering at Sonic for not being faster himself. Sonic by all means would have run faster, had his entire body not been hurting; had even so much as taking a breath not caused burning pain to flare up in his chest.

“West and south borders are cleared,” Knuckles said. “Sol’s soldiers are in the east, Ark’s in the north, clearing up the rest of the badniks. The rest of our army is dispersed inside the Kingdom, taking care of internal enemies.”

Sonic sighed. “Good. And Eggman… he’s gone, for now.” He shifted his weight, and pain flared up in his lower thigh—when had he been injured there? Why did it feel wet under his armor? He gritted his teeth. “Come on, let’s finish cleanup and report to the Royals.”

“Are you okay, dude?”

“Fine.”

It was when the adrenaline faded that his injuries truly became a problem. 

He didn’t report said injuries, of course, because there was simply too much to do; getting medical treatment would only slow things down. He was fine. Besides, the Wind Spirit didn’t _get_ hurt. Right? The grand tales he’d heard of his past lives never involved detail of the way they limped through their Kingdom after a battle, their body trembling uncontrollably in the wake of being shocked by some sort of lightning machine…

He stood upon the castle’s lawn, accompanied by the King, the Princess, Shadow, and Blaze, to debrief. As soon as the border opened in the southeast, Vanilla had taken a horse and hurried off, not to arrive back at her home Kingdom for a week. With her, she carried word that Mobius was safe once more, that food and medical supplies would need to be shipped to her allies in Mobius, that the Mobian evacuees could return to their homes.

“All badniks have been removed from your borders,” Blaze reported. “Any that we didn’t destroy retreated back to the west.”

“Eggman—sorry. Robotnik retreated as well,” Sonic said, ignoring the fact that his vision was starting to blur, “Though he knew of this morning’s ambush. He… He has a… an…”

“Sonic?” Amy’s voice, soft and worried, drifted into his ears. He barely registered it.

“He has an informant,” Sonic said, his voice quiet. “He knew about the plan and took… measures, accordingly.”

“We need to find out who the informant is,” Shadow cut in, “Or else we are all doomed.”

“Way to be optimistic,” Amy grumbled. “For now, go back to your Kingdoms, get some rest, tend to your wounded. You all did wonderful today… I wish I could have been there.”

“It was for your safety that you were not,” Sonic breathed. Chaos, he just—he just needed to sit down, close his eyes for a minute…

“Something does not feel right,” Shadow said, “Robotnik claimed he had already won…”

Shadow’s voice faded. He still spoke, but the words were not making it to Sonic’s ears. Everything was too fuzzy, too distant, the world around him was spinning too fast.

Vaguely, he registered the feeling of strong arms catching him, lowering him gently to the ground. Blurry pink fur, the sound of a female voice, urging him to will his armor to disappear. Armor? Did he have armor on? It didn’t feel like it. Armor was heavy; he felt no such weight.

The muffled voice kept talking—yelling. Why was she so upset? Hmmmm… There was no reason to be upset. He was okay… he was… okay…

The pain was finally subsided as he drifted into numb, inky blackness.


	21. REBUILDING, Act 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i thought my chapter naming system was so clever during the beginning visits to each Kingdom. Now my chapter names are... much suckier

Amy’s mind was reeling. Sonic had looked perfectly fine at the beginning of the debrief meeting in the castle yard; she was only mildly concerned when Sonic appeared to be drifting off a bit. She chalked that up to exhaustion, as he’d certainly had quite a bit of that in the past few days.

But then he collapsed. 

Again, she briefly considered that he was just tired, but something didn’t feel right. As she caught him in her arms, he gazed up at her, his eyes hazy and unfocused, his breaths ragged.

“Take your armor off,” she urged him as she laid him down in the grass. “Please!”

There were no latches or buckles on this magical armor. If he did not will it to go away on his own, would it even be possible to get it off him? If she couldn’t get it off, whatever injuries lay underneath the magical armor would only get worse. 

He didn’t respond to her plea. She begged him to stay awake, keep his eyes open, talk to him; but all she said seemed to not register in his head as his eyes drifted closed.

“What happened?” She demanded, tearing her eyes away from Sonic for a moment and glaring intensely directly at King Shadow.

“I don’t know.”

“You don’t _know?_ Shadow, you were supposed to be _with him!!_ ”

“Whatever it is, it must have happened before I arrived!” Shadow argued, glaring just as intensely at Amy as she was at him, “I had my own things to deal with! Robotnik knew about the attack and set plans in place to keep me away—”

He froze momentarily, his eyes widening.

“…To keep me away from the Wind Spirit for as long as possible.”

“This whole thing was a trap,” Amy whispered, “He knew Sonic was going to be there. He knew Sonic was going to be there, for a few precious minutes, _alone._ He—he set up a trap to kill him.”

“This must have been what Robotnik meant,” Blaze said, kneeling beside Sonic and gently placing her hand against his head, “When he said he had already won.”

“ _Chaos…_ ” Amy breathed, gently scooping Sonic up off the ground. She winced as he coughed, then gasped softly, and she tried her best to cradle him in her arms as gently as she possibly could. “Blaze, go find Knuckles and Tails. You remember them, right? The echidna and the fox that accompanied me to your kingdom.”

Blaze nodded and ran off. Amy then glanced over at Shadow, made eye contact with him, opened her mouth…

And he vanished in a flash of light.

The Princess swore. Loudly. It was improper and crude for a royal to behave in such a way, but she didn’t care. Not right now.

Shadow seemed to have a respect for the Wind Spirit’s divinity, so while Sonic and Shadow certainly seemed to have their disagreements, she could only hope that the King of Ark was off doing something to help.

Amy turned to look at her father; or, more accurately, where her father had once stood. Where had he gone? When did he leave? Amy was furious. Turning and running towards the castle’s infirmary, she made a mental note to have a word with her father later.

Amy paced back and forth in the infirmary, just off to the side of a cot that Sonic lay on. She glanced over at him and gasped softly as she noticed that spots of blood had trickled through the armor and stained the white sheets below him.

Tails and Knuckles sat just off to the side in uncomfortable-looking chairs. Knuckles looked worried sick, and Tails was on the verge of tears as he tore through as many books as he could (a large stack stood on the floor to his left, all borrowed from the library).

“There has to be some sort of manual bypass,” Tails mumbled, leafing through a large book with illustrations that depicted variations in Wind Spirit armor; the way it melded with the wearer's form as well as personality, creating something unique for each incarnate. It was one of Amy's favorite books growing up. “If only this weren’t written in the language of the Ancients… not enough time to decipher it… If Sonic were awake, he’d be able to read it for sure—b-but we wouldn’t need to be doing this if he were awake—"

Amy took Sonic’s hand in her own, gently slipping his gauntlet off. As soon as contact with the Wind Spirit’s body ceased, the gauntlet dissolved into the air around them. Behind her, Tails gasped, watching with wide eyes.

“That might be it,” Tails exclaimed, standing up.

“There’s no latches on his armor,” Amy sighed, intertwining her fingers with Sonic’s now bare hand, thumbing her gloved fingers through soft blue fur, pressing gently upon the peach-colored pads at the tips of his fingers. “Even if we could get some of it off, removing the important pieces would be near impossible.” 

Not without hurting him further.

Visibly upset, Tails sunk back into his seat. “Well,” he said quietly, “We could at least take off what we can, right? Make him a little more comfortable?”

“Yeah,” Amy breathed, and set to work taking off what she could; which, she quickly realized, didn’t amount to very much, as most of the armor was fitted perfectly to his body. It would prove impossible to, say, slide the bracers off his forearms, because they did not account for needing to be slid over a hand.

_Drip. Drip. Drip._

Amy watched helplessly as the blood seeping out of the armor on his right leg began oversaturating the sheets and dripping down to the floor, forming a small puddle. The medics had done the best they could in the circumstance, wrapping bandage cloth around the armor to try to add pressure to the wound, but with his armor still in place, there wasn’t much anyone could do. So, the medics went off to tend to people they could actively help, informing Amy to call any of them should Sonic’s situation… change.

They were running out of time.

Amy knelt at the side of Sonic’s cot, her elbows resting on its edge, hands clasped together. She lowered her head and closed her eyes.

“Wind Spirit,” She whispered, “Please heed my prayer, for I know not what else I can do. Your mortal carrier through this world is in danger. If—If you can hear me, please, lower his armor so we may tend to his wounds…”

She trailed off, looking up and at where Sonic lay. A moment passed. Two. Behind her, she could hear Tails continuing to frantically flip through his pile of books. When nothing responded to her prayer, she ducked her head down atop Sonic’s chest and sobbed.

“Amy,” Knuckles’ voice penetrated the silence, “Tails. Look.”

Amy lifted her head off Sonic’s chest to see the armor dissipating, dissolving into tiny glowing specks that danced around them. A cold breeze knocked open a nearby window, the air swirling around the room; and when the air stilled once more, Sonic’s armor was gone.

“The prayer,” Tails breathed, “That must be the failsafe. The Wind Spirit Herself must have read into your intentions and deemed you trustworthy…”

The first thing Amy noticed was the horrifically dark bruising that stretched around his ribs, the discolored skin visible even through the blue parts of his fur. And the blood; oh, Chaos, the _blood_ … A long gash stretched across his thigh, blood matted in his fur. Another cut, though small and only just slightly oozing blood at this point, sat just below his ribs.

“Medic!” Amy called out, “Can I get a medic over here?”

A young fox (Amy placed her at perhaps twenty, perhaps only a year or so older than Tails) hurried over and began tending to Sonic’s wounds.

“He’ll need stitches on his leg,” The fox said with a sad smile. “He most definitely has at least a few broken ribs, which may have to be surgically set so they heal properly. You may wish to step out for a bit.”

“I want to stay,” Amy said a little too quickly. The medic gazed at her silently for a moment. Amy sighed, then shook her head. “I—I’m sorry. I know, I’ll only get in the way. Come on, boys, let’s get going.”

Knuckles got up and left the infirmary. Tails lingered for a moment, gazing at the fox with, Amy noticed, a slight pink tint to his cheeks. He then quickly snapped his head towards the ground, gathering up all his books and hurrying out behind his brother.

“What’s your name?” Amy asked softly, standing in the doorway.

“Zooey,” The doctor replied.

“Thank you, Zooey,” Amy said, with a gentle smile, “For helping him.”

Amy left the room.

“I’m going over to the warehouse,” Knuckles announced as he, Tails, and Amy walked.

“Bring a team,” Amy commanded. “Be vigilant. I don’t want you getting hurt out there.”

“Yes, Your Highness.” He bowed, then turned at the intersection in the castle hall, briskly walking towards the front doors.

Amy turned to Tails. “You okay?” She asked, gently placing her hand upon his shoulder.

“Yeah,” He said quietly. “Just… worried.”

“He’ll be okay. He’s in good hands.”

“I—I know.”

Amy paused for a moment, then smiled. “Her name is Zooey, by the way.”

“Huh?”

“The doctor you may or may not be crushing on.”

Tails stared at Amy, eyes wide, then laughed.

Tails and Amy diverged paths not too long afterwards. Tails was headed back to the library to return his books, then likely to the workshop to get some work done and distract himself from worrying about his brother.

Amy headed straight for the throne room.

“Father,” Amy growled as she shoved the throne room door open, glaring so intensely that if looks could kill she’d be charged with the assassination of the King. “We need to talk.”

“Indeed,” The King said, leaning back where he sat upon his throne, “Your wedding will be tomorrow morning, Amy. I expect you to speak with the tailor about getting a wedding dress—”

“No.”

“Excuse me?” The King sounded agitated.

“No.” Amy repeated, stern and steadfast. “This is what I came to talk about; I am done playing your games, Father. You have no power over me. As soon as this conversation is over, I am walking over to Big’s estate and telling him the wedding’s off.”

“I will allow no such thing!”

“Do you think I _care?_ ” Amy yelled. “You have done nothing but try to twist my arm and manipulate me. For what purpose? What could you possibly be trying to achieve? You used to be the kindest, most loving man I knew. What ever happened to the empathetic King of Mobius? The King who considered others’ needs—others’ feelings—before his own desires?”

“That man died with your mother.”

“Well,” Amy growled, “If that’s the case, then _I should be Queen!!_ ”

She knew her father was speaking metaphorically; her father was most definitely still alive, he was simply… a changed man. A ruined man.

“I am fed up with you,” Amy continued. “I am a Royal too. You have no right to be making decisions for me, telling me how to live. No longer will I take your abuse or submit to your word. _You disgust me.”_

Amy spat the last sentence with as much venom in her voice as she possibly could, then turned on her heels and marched towards the exit.

“A Wind Spirit cannot be King,” her father’s voice rang out as she reached the door. She stopped walking, standing with one hand braced against the door to keep it open. “Just as She cannot be reborn into royalty, international Law states that a Wind Spirit incarnate cannot _become_ royalty.”

“I know,” Amy drawled. “He will not be King, but I will marry him anyways. I have no qualms with being sole ruler of this Kingdom; I know I’ll certainly be better than you.”

Amy made her way to Big’s estate. He didn’t live too far from the castle; it was perhaps a ten minute walk. It was cold out, so she bundled up Sonic’s scarf around her neck (which she had taken off him back in the infirmary). It smelled like him.

Big’s estate was a nice, quaint place; a manor with a large pond full of lily pads just off to the side. The yard was well-kept and decorated with bubbling fountains and stones. She always enjoyed her visits here; It carried a homely feeling, a place of solace where she could forget about her problems for a little while. Big was a good friend—they spent more time together in their childhood than they did in their adulthood, but nonetheless he was a warm presence in her life.

But he was no husband.

She knocked on the front door. A minute passed, then the door swung open to reveal a very large, fluffy violet cat.

“Oh, hello!” He said. “You’re just in time for tea. Would you like some?”

Amy nodded, and followed Big inside the house. Big poured her a cup of tea, and she took it in her hands, grateful for its warmth.

“Big, I… wanted to talk with you, for a minute, if that’s alright.”

“Okay,” he said, pouring a cup of tea which he set down on the nearby table just beside his pet frog. The frog stared up at him and croaked. A third cup of tea was brewed for himself.

“Well, you know my father has been trying to marry us,” Amy said quietly. “But I… Big, I’m sorry, but I refuse to marry someone I do not love in such a way; I am calling off the wedding.”

“That’s alright,” Big said with a smile, “I’m not upset.”

“You aren’t?” She asked, taking a sip of her tea.

“No,” He said. “I think Froggy would get lost in the castle.”

Amy chuckled softly. He always was rather simple-minded, but his love for his pet frog came through clear as day. It was sweet.


	22. REBUILDING, Act 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is the FIRST of a TWO-CHAPTER update. Enjoy!

Where was Gadget?

Amy realized, as a few days passed and the rebuilding initiatives around Mobius began, that she hadn’t seen Gadget since the afternoon she baked the cake with Sonic. In fact; she had positioned him outside the kitchen door, only to find he had been gone when she and Sonic came back out. 

She didn’t mind too much at first. After learning to appreciate her personal knights (thanks to getting to know Sonic, of course) she decided to lighten up on their responsibilities, treat them well. This meant that Gadget was allowed to break attention and wander off for a short while if there was something he deemed important, or if he needed a break. 

She figured that afternoon was just one of those times.

But then he hadn’t come back; he wasn’t even among the ranks of soldiers that protected the Royal Family and other nobles in the castle during their battle to reclaim the Kingdom. She chalked that up to perhaps that he was needed out on the front lines; though it didn’t make much sense, now that she thought deeper about it. He had been tasked to protect the Princess after Sonic’s short disappearance, and while he was a good fighter, he didn’t have anything special enough to warrant him leaving her side.

So, she asked around. The servants, knights, and Captains all seemed to not have any knowledge of his whereabouts. This was weird. Where could he have gone?

Amy didn’t mind not having a knight by her side, but she had certainly gotten used to another’s presence nearby over the years. Especially with Sonic still unconscious, she felt… lonely.

Amy hadn’t spoken to her father in days. Not since she confronted him. But… maybe he had an idea about Gadget’s whereabouts. Nervously, she approached her father, hoping not to spark another death-threat-hatred-fiasco that Sonic’s disappearance to Mystic Jungle had sparked.

“Father,” Amy said, “Have you seen Gadget recently?”

“Oh, dear,” Her father said, “Have you not heard the news?”

“What news?”

“Gadget was executed three days ago.”

“ _Executed?!?_ ” Amy yelled, “Why? On what charges?”

“He was the informant to Robotnik,” the King said, leaning back in his throne and crossing his legs.

Amy narrowed her eyes. That… that didn’t seem like something Gadget would do. He was shy, nervous, and carried a loyalty to his Kingdom. He looked up to Sonic quite a bit, aspired to prove himself to be a worthy warrior. He never said it, but Amy could tell he wanted to perhaps be a Captain someday; she could see it in his eyes, how he would watch in awe as the Captains worked, trained, fought.

“You… You didn’t even offer him a trial?”

“A betrayer to the Kingdom has no right to a trial.”

“Did he at least get a proper burial?”

“Hmm,” the King hummed, then shrugged. “Probably.”

Amy left the throne room without another word. She felt exhausted after hearing the news; especially her father’s response to her final question. How could he be so heartless to those who served him?

Three days. Three days since Sonic collapsed, three days since they discovered someone had been informing Robotnik of their every move… Three days since Gadget had been executed.

She made her way to the infirmary. Amy was surprised to find out that Sonic had been moved to a small auxiliary room off to the side. The infirmary was, for the most part, one open space; with each cot separated from each other by a thin curtain. This room was reserved for royalty, so Amy was intrigued to find Sonic here. Though, she supposed, being the Wind Spirit was a royalty of its own.

Pulling a creaky wooden chair up beside the cot that Sonic lay on, she gently combed her fingers through his fur, his quills, working out any tangles that had started to form from days without a proper grooming.

“Princess,” A low voice said from behind her. She glanced behind her.

“Hey, Knuckles,” Amy said softly. 

“You okay, Your Highness?” He asked, leaning a shoulder against the doorway.

“I guess,” Amy said noncommittally. She sighed sadly. “I just—Gadget—My father informed me that he was executed.”

“ _Chaos,_ ” Knuckles breathed, “Did he say why?”

“Allegations of being the informant,” She said. “But it makes no sense. Gadget’s not the type.”

“Well,” Knuckles said, “I’ve been looking for you—I wanted to let you know Shadow went to Apotos. He requested to borrow Queen Vanilla’s detectives; best detectives in the land, they claim. He brought them here, then went back to his homeland.”

“Thank you,” Amy said. “I look forward to meeting them.”

A moment passed. Amy reached out and smoothed out an errant quill on Sonic’s head.

“Did you find anything at Robotnik’s hideout?” Amy asked. “We never really got the chance to touch base.”

“Mostly a lot of debris,” Knuckles reported, “Badnik remains, structural damage. There was a strange machine in the middle of the room, but I have no idea what it is. Tails could definitely figure it out, but I don’t want him getting anywhere near that thing.”

Amy met the detectives later that afternoon. ‘The Chaotix,’ as they called themselves, consisted of a crocodile, a chameleon, and a young, energetic bee.

“We’ve been told there’s someone feeding information to Robotnik,” Vector, the crocodile, said—likely the leader of the group.

“Yes,” Amy replied, “One knight was executed on said charges; his name was Gadget. He… I believe he was innocent. Logically speaking, he—he didn’t even know of the details of the plan long enough to give Robotnik enough advance notice.”

“We’ll look into it,” The chameleon, who had introduced himself as Espio, said. “Please don’t hesitate to let us know if you need anything from us.”

“Thank you,” Amy smiled. The three of them bowed to the Princess of Mobius, then hurried on their way to begin their investigation.

“It has to be someone within the core group of people who made the plan,” Vector said as the detectives walked away from Amy.

“Or a spy, someone hiding in the shadows and listening in without anyone’s knowledge,” Charmy added.

“Okay. Let’s list off our potential suspects…”

Amy spent the rest of the afternoon in the castle graveyard, walking every row and reading every name of the knights that had been buried there. Perhaps it was ridiculous of her to do this, but she needed the closure. She needed to find out if Gadget got a gravestone.

And she found it; way in the back corner of the graveyard obscured by bushes and vines. If she had not been looking closely, she would not have seen it. She was angry, that they hid his grave as if he were a scar upon Mobius history. There was no way it was him, she refused to believe it!

Tears welling up in her eyes, she ran to the castle garden, grabbing some gardening tools. A pair of clippers, a shovel. As an afterthought, she picked a few flowers, too, bright red like the color of his fur.

She clipped away the vines that covered his grave. With the shovel, she uprooted a nearby bush and replanted it a few paces away. Once Gadget’s grave was uncovered, she carefully laid the flowers down.

“Gadget,” She whispered. “I’m so sorry. You were brought in to protect me, but I wasn’t able to protect you.”

She wondered if she’d have to give Sonic a eulogy, too. She shook the thought out of her head before it could go any further. He’d be fine. She lost Gadget, but Sonic would be fine. Sonic was still breathing.

Returning to the castle, Amy went to her bedchamber and grabbed a few pillows and blankets before hurrying back to the infirmary. She placed a blanket atop Sonic; something thicker and warmer than the thin sheets they provided, and a more comfortable pillow under his head. She then dumped the remaining pillow and blanket atop the wooden chair, hoping to make it a little more comfortable.

She had no intention of leaving Sonic’s side.

A courier found her later in the evening and handed her a letter. The envelope, addressed to the Princess, carried Gadget’s name. She gazed down at the envelope for a long while; Gadget had written something to her and put it in the mail before he died.

She didn’t want to open it. The letter carried his last words, and she wasn’t ready to confront that yet.

She put it in her pocket, unopened, unread.

Another hour or so passed in complete silence before Sonic rolled his head to the side and made a soft noise; it wasn’t much, just a tiny whine, but it snapped Amy out of her thoughts, and she gazed attentively at the Wind Spirit.

Slowly, green eyes opened. Amy gasped, reaching out and taking Sonic’s hand in both of her own.

“Why are you crying?” Sonic whispered, gazing up at her. 

“I’m worried about you, silly,” Amy replied, squeezing his hand.

“I’m okay,” He said; his voice was hoarse. “I’m okay.”

He tried to sit up and he winced heavily. The blankets fell off his torso to reveal bandages around his chest. His free hand flew to his ribs, clutching his side in pain. Amy let go of Sonic’s hand and gently eased him back down on the bed.

“Lay down,” She said, “Relax.”

He sighed, but otherwise complied with her, laying back down on the cot.

“Are you comfortable?” She asked quietly. “Do you need anything?”

“No,” Sonic replied, “And no. Don’t worry yourself, Your Highness.”

He coughed, then whined softly, leaning his head back and closing his eyes. He took a slow, deep breath.

“What happened?” Amy asked, very gingerly laying a hand on his chest; a part she knew wasn’t injured.

“Oh, that?” Sonic breathed, opening his eyes once again, “Got thrown into a wall.”

“But—” Amy frowned. “You’ve been thrown through an entire building before and turned out perfectly fine.”

He chuckled. “I had my armor on then.”

“You—You _didn’t_ have your armor on when you were facing Robotnik?” Amy asked, “What were you thinking, Sonic?”

“It was—I— I didn’t mean to. Have it off.”

Amy frowned. “We can talk more later,” She said.

Zooey, the doctor from before, came in and smiled when she saw Sonic was awake. She checked the stitches on his leg, first, then wrapped it up with fresh bandages. After that, she had him sit up (Amy placed a hand against his upper back for support), and the bandages around his chest were removed.

Amy was relieved to see no surgical incisions or scars under the bandages. His ribs, though broken, were fine enough to let heal on their own.

Once again, fresh bandages were put into place, and Zooey cleared him.

“As long as you’re careful,” Zooey said, “You’re free to go. Get plenty of rest, stay off your feet, and if anything feels weird or you start running a fever, come back here.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Sonic affirmed. He paused, then said, “Hey, you should go hang out with the blacksmith sometime. He’s a pretty cool guy.”

The medic smiled (and, dare Amy say it, may have blushed ever so slightly), then hurried on her way to help whatever patients were next on her list.

“You trying to hook up Tails and Zooey?” Amy asked with an amused smile.

“Oh yeah,” Sonic laughed, “You have no idea. Tails has been head over heels for her for _ages._ It’s getting ridiculous. He’s never so much as even asked her for her name—”

“I told him her name a few days ago,” Amy said as she helped Sonic off the bed and to his feet. 

“Ah!” Sonic exclaimed, wrapping an arm around Amy’s waist, “Progress.”

Though it was late, Amy’s first order of business was to get Sonic properly groomed. That, of course, included a bath, which Sonic was by no means happy about; but he complied, letting Amy lather him up with soap and wash it out with the water he oh-so-hated.

After he was dried off, he and Amy existed the bathchamber and back into Amy’s quarters proper, and Amy handed him a pair of gloves.

“Oh, shoot,” Sonic said as he took them from her, “Guess I, uh, wasn’t wearing any this whole time, huh?”

Amy giggled. “Nobody saw you except me, your brothers, and the medic.”

He slid a glove over one hand, paused, then took it off. Amy, confused, watched as he grabbed a pair of scissors off Amy’s desk and cut the fingers halfway off on both gloves, before putting them back on his hands.

“Why do you always wear gloves like that?” Amy asked.

“Meh,” He said, “I’ve never liked not being able to feel things.”

“Fair enough,” She said with a shrug, sitting down on the side of her bed. 

“It used to be worse,” Sonic said with a laugh. He was still standing in the middle of the room, but Amy didn’t fault him for not wanting to sit down; he’d been cooped up in bed, unconscious, for three days. He certainly needed to stretch his legs.

“How so?” Amy asked.

“I used to rip the soles out of my shoes,” he explained, “When Tails and Knux first started bringing me into the Kingdom. It drove them nuts. I was so used to feeling the ground beneath my feet that it was hard to adjust. Wasn’t until I stepped on a nail that I learned my lesson on that one.”

“You don’t talk about your past very much,” Amy noted, “Any reason why?”

“It’s really nothing special,” Sonic said with a shrug. “I’m here now, that’s what matters.”

“Would you… be willing to tell me?”

Sonic gazed at her for a moment, then walked over to the bed and laid down, gently guiding Amy to lay down beside him.

“Sure.”


	23. RECOLLECTIONS

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really said “SotW readers have rights this weekend” — THIS IS THE SECOND OF A TWO-CHAPTER UPDATE. If you haven't read the previous chapter, go back!
> 
> This chapter is one that I hadn't anticipated on including in the core story, but ended up fitting in! Enjoy!

A gentle breeze ruffled woodland leaves. Squirrels scampered from tree to tree, chattering in the mid-afternoon sunlight. A young deer stood with its head bowed at the river, unaware of the pair of vivid green eyes that watched it. The predator slunk forward slowly, padding silently across the ground as he closed the distance between himself and his lunch.

The deer perked its head up to catch a shock of vivid blue fur standing out against the browns and greens of the forest. Just as he pounced, the deer took off running, sending its hunter careening into the river.

First, frustration coursed through his veins. He was usually not this sloppy. Fifteen summers of living out in the woods did nothing if not teach him how to hunt and survive effectively (or, as effectively as he could, given his poorly-camouflaged fur).

Next, the shock of hitting the water; though he’d lived his whole life at the edge of the river, he always dreaded what lay within it; as the coursing rapids threatened to pull him under. He gasped for air just before his head went under, squeezing his eyes shut to keep the water out. He flailed his arms helplessly as the rapids carried him downstream.

His head breached the surface for a moment; just long enough to open his eyes and see a large rock up ahead that he could grab onto. He tried his best to stay afloat, but the water got the better of him, yanking him down once more.

A moment passed, then the hedgehog threw out his arms and grabbed for the rock. When his hands made purchase, he clung to it, heaving himself up out of the river.

He hated water.

Adjusting his position atop the rock, he pressed himself down, then leapt with all his strength, landing just on the other side of the river. His momentum carried him forward, and he yelped softly as he tumbled across the ground quite a ways.

When he got his footing, he shook himself off and took a moment to look around. He didn’t recognize this part of the woods; it was rather far downstream. From here, he could see the edge of the woods. Just outside the treeline was a stretch of grassy fields that led to a large stone structure; flat and tall, stretching indefinitely on both sides.

This was why he stayed further upstream, where the woods was deeper. He didn’t understand what that strange wall was. It freaked him out a little bit. It marked the end of his known world, and what lay behind it was completely undetermined. 

For all he knew, the world ended there.

His stomach grumbled, and he sighed. He saw a squirrel nearby, but it was too close, too close to the edge of the woods.

A snapping twig caught his attention and his ears twitched. Whirling around, he saw in the distance two beings like him. He had never seen other bipedal animals like himself before. He cocked his head inquisitively to one side, hunching down low to the ground and slowly sneaking forward on all fours; quiet, as if on a hunt.

The two strangers, one as gold as a sunrise and one red like blood, appeared to be… communicating with each other. The red one made sounds with his mouth that the golden one seemed to understand. The sounds were meaningless to the hedgehog, but he watched in curiosity anyways.

But he stayed too long. The golden-furred one noticed him, gazing at him with wide sky-blue eyes. He nudged the red one.

The gold one said something. Moved his hand back and forth, took a step forward. The hedgehog flinched and stumbled backwards, ears flat against his head. He hunched down closer to the ground, as if the lower he got, the less visible he would be; but he still captured the strangers’ attention.

The fox looked surprised when he backed up, turning to the echidna and saying something softly.

The echidna crouched down to the hedgehog’s level and slowly advanced forward, a hand held out in front of him. He was saying something slowly, softly.

The hedgehog growled softly, tense, uneasy. He glanced over his shoulder, looking for an escape route. With the river just behind him, there wasn’t much space to run. Perhaps if he could hop back onto the rock and across to the other side…

He looked back at the strangers. They hadn’t moved at all, aside from the fox; who had squatted down on the ground and was searching through some sort of fabric bag he had been carrying.

Out of the bag came meat held between two slices of… something spongy, brown. His stomach growled, and he whined softly. The fox made a face, perhaps one of sympathy or pity, and held it out towards him.

He stared at it. The fox said something, gesturing towards the food with his free hand.

He slunk forward, slowly, then with a shaking hand snatched it out of the fox’s hand, turned, and ran. He hopped upon the rock that sat in the middle of the river, then vaulted the rest of the way to the safety of the other side of the river, continuing his way upstream until he reached familiar territory.

When he confirmed the strangers had not followed him, he sat down at the trunk of a tree and ate.

The next day, he snapped awake to the sound of familiar voices in the distance. The red echidna exclaimed loudly and pointed in his direction, and he froze, anxiety rising inside of him. He wasn’t sure why exactly he was afraid, but this was something incredibly unfamiliar. Where had they come from?

The fox sat down upon a fallen tree nearby and reached into his bag. Out of the bag he pulled a bright red fruit and a slice of that brown stuff he’d eaten for the first time the day prior. The fox flicked his two tails and waved slowly for the hedgehog to come over. The echidna sat down on the tree trunk beside the fox silently.

Slowly, tentatively, he approached. The strangers hadn’t tried to hurt him, so he figured maybe he could trust them…

The echidna picked up the fruit. He pointed to it, then said something slowly. When the hedgehog didn’t understand, he pointed to the fruit and said it again. And again.

“Apple,” The echidna said. The hedgehog pieced together the sounds, identifying that to perhaps be a term to describe what kind of fruit it was.

They were trying to teach him their language.

When that registered in the hedgehog’s mind, the echidna had said the word about five times.

“A—” The hedgehog fumbled a bit, trying to figure out how to make those sounds with his mouth. “App…le.”

It was awkward and clumsy, but the fox’s face lit up in a big toothy smile when the hedgehog responded. The echidna looked happy, too, though the fox was clearly more expressive.

The hedgehog and the echidna went back and forth, repeating the word to each other until he got the hang of it. Then, the echidna handed him the apple and let him eat it.

Then, when the apple core was discarded, the fox held up the brown food and said something a few times, slowly.

“Bread,” he said. 

The process repeated. And later:

“Knuckles,” The fox said, pointing towards the echidna.

“Knuckles,” The echidna said, pointing at himself. 

“Miles,” The fox then said, pointing at himself.

And the echidna—Knuckles—repeated, “Miles,” pointing at the fox.

This went on for quite some time. Every day when the sun was high in the sky, they would visit. He slowly developed a basic grasp on the language.

“Do you have a name?” Miles asked one afternoon. 

He paused between bites of his meat-bread-stack—no—sandwich, he reminded himself. He stared at Miles blankly.

“You don’t know?” He asked.

“I don’t know,” the hedgehog repeated.

“Let me see that,” Miles said, pointing towards the metal tag suspended on a string that he wore around his neck.

He wasn’t sure what the tag was, but he’d had it his whole life; it was the only thing he could call his own.

He reached back and unclasped it, tentatively handing it to Miles.

“It’s mine,” he said.

“Yeah,” Miles replied with a smile. “I know. It’s yours.”

He watched as Miles looked at the tag. Upon the tag was some sort of engraving; perhaps a written version of this spoken language.

“Sonic,” Miles said. “I think your name is Sonic.”

He handed the tag back to Sonic, and he clasped it back around his neck. 

“Sonic,” the hedgehog repeated. He liked the sound of it.

“What’s behind it?” Sonic asked the next day when Miles and Knuckles arrived.

“Behind what?” Knuckles asked with a confused expression on his face. 

“It,” Sonic repeated, struggling to find a word to describe what he was talking about. “Big rock.”

“Can you show us?” Miles asked, and Sonic nodded, leading the two of them to the edge of the forest, pointing at the large stone-brick wall.

“The wall,” Knuckles instructed.

“What’s behind the wall?”

“The Kingdom,” Miles said. “Our home.”

The day after that, Miles handed him a pair of white fabric… things.

“Gloves,” Miles said, pointing to the glove on his own hand. “You have to wear them inside the Kingdom.”

Sonic slid them over his hands and grimaced, not at all enjoying the fact that he couldn’t _feel_ things. The gloves were restricting and unpleasant. He pulled them off immediately.

“No, no,” Miles said, “Wear them. We want to take you to the Kingdom. You can’t go in if you don’t.”

“That makes no sense.”

“I know, I know. But showing your hands in the Kingdom is… Private. And, here—” Miles handed him similar fabric for his feet, then a pair of something made of relatively worn-down leather. “Socks and shoes. To protect your feet.”

Sonic did not like the gloves, socks, or shoes one bit. He couldn’t feel the things he touched, and, as well, couldn’t feel the dirt under his feet. He voiced his complaint with a whine.

Miles and Knuckles led Sonic to the edge of the forest and Sonic immediately halted nervously. His ears flattened down against his head.

“Hey, it’s okay,” Knuckles said, taking Sonic gently by the hand and guiding him out of the woods. This was far out of Sonic’s comfort zone. He had no idea what to expect behind the wall, and he was afraid.

Slowly, he was led to the wall. At the base of the wall was an opening, where two people stood wearing metal on their bodies.

“Knights,” Miles said.

Sonic frowned. He pointed up at the sky.

“But it’s day.”

Miles chuckled softly. “No,” he said, “Not night; Knight. It’s said the same way, but it means another thing. In this case, it’s the word for these people’s job.”

Sonic had a lot of questions, but refrained from asking them as he and his companions were admitted into the Kingdom.

“This is Mobius,” Knuckles said, “The name of the Kingdom.”

They walked down a stone-paved pathway. Sonic looked around with wide, awe-struck eyes. Shelters built of stone and wood stood side by side, lining the road. 

As they got further into town, Sonic found himself hiding behind Knuckles and Miles more and more; the streets were full of people, the buildings were so much larger than any shelter Sonic had ever built in the woods. It was a lot. It was beautiful. It was overwhelming.

People stared at him, the way he clung to Knuckles’ arm for reassurance, the way he hunched down and flattened his ears. That only made him want to hide more.

“It’s okay,” Miles said to the people who stared for too long at his companion’s strange behavior, “He’s just shy.”

That first time he went into Mobius, it was just for a short while so he could learn what was there. At the end of the overwhelming adventure, Miles and Knuckles led him to the Kingdom gate and let him go back to the woods, back to his home.

But after Sonic had been in and out of the Kingdom a few times, was getting accustomed to the surroundings and culture, Knuckles and Miles told him they wanted him to live in the Kingdom with them.

Sonic was nervous, but had grown to trust them, so he stayed in the Kingdom. Knuckles and Miles lived… nowhere. As it turned out, the two of them lived a very similar lifestyle that Sonic had; just inside of common society. Night to night, the three of them found shelter wherever they could; in alleyways, under overhangs of rooves, inside construction zones.

Knuckles had a “job,” a term he’d heard before but didn’t understand. Knuckles would do things to contribute to society, and in turn, he would be given a thing called “money,” which was used to exchange for things like food and clothing.

“I don’t like my name,” Miles said one evening as the three of them huddled under a tree. “It reminds me too much of my family.”

“Pick a new one, dude,” Knuckles said. “They’re not your family anymore.”

“You can do that?” Sonic asked, astonished.

That sparked a conversation about nicknames. Sonic _really_ liked that concept, so much that he came up with nicknames for his two brothers not too long after.

“Hey, Knux, Tails,” Sonic said the next morning, gathering up a couple spare coins, “I’m gonna go get breakfast. Want anything specific?”

Miles froze for a moment. 

“Tails?” He asked.

“Yeah,” Sonic said, “Cuz, y’know, you’ve got… two of them.”

Miles—Tails—laughed. “I like it.”

“See if you can nab a breakfast sandwich for us,” Knuckles said with a smile, patting Tails on the shoulder.

Sonic gave his brothers a playful salute—a gesture he’d picked up one day after watching a knight salute to their superior—then turned and hurried off to the market.

The day Tails got chosen to be an apprentice blacksmith at the castle was cause for massive celebration between the three brothers. They ran and danced through the streets, laughing and cheering. They spent a large amount of the money Knuckles had received from his last paycheck from his job—a tender for a small shop in the market—on chili dogs from a local food stand. Chili dogs, which grew to be Sonic’s favorite food, were a luxury. They were just far enough out of their food budget range that they didn’t often spend the money to buy them, instead saving them for things like holidays, birthdays.

(A year prior, Knuckles and Tails had made the joint decision that Sonic’s birthday would fall late June. Sonic had no idea what day he was born on, so as a family, they made a decision. Sonic felt honored to have a birthday.)

Halfway through his chili dog, Sonic frowned.

“You’ll have to leave us,” He said softly. Tails and Knuckles looked at him, then sighed.

“We can make it work,” Tails said, “We’re still family—”

“We can join the knight force,” Knuckles said. "That way we'll always be nearby."

Sonic grinned. He and Knuckles could become knights.


	24. REBUILDING, Act 3

A caravan of emergency supplies came from Apotos a few days later, the horse-drawn carts packed to the brim with medical supplies and food. Amy and her father spent a large portion of their day overseeing the distribution of the supplies across the Kingdom. Overall, it was quite the production. Knuckles and his unit of soldiers were lugging equipment and supplies around, and Tails was taking inventory of everything.

Which left Sonic all alone in the castle.

Amy wasn’t particularly thrilled with not being able to keep an eye on him; he was growing antsy from being cooped up in bed to recover from his injuries. He slept a lot at first, but now he was anxious to get up and move. He had been healing quite quickly—and Amy had no doubt that it was the Wind Spirit helping bring Her mortal vessel back to peak condition—but she would still very much rather he rest.

Just before she left the castle, she’d handed Sonic a pile of books and told him to read them; though he couldn’t read the modern language, the books written in the language of the Ancients were fair game thanks to his innate ability to decipher the language (Amy didn’t quite understand how this worked, but figured it was likely just a skill, like the inherent knowledge of the Ceremonial Dance, that was passed from lifetime to lifetime). She figured the pile of books would last him a while.

Clearly, she was wrong.

It only was about an hour since she had left the castle that Sonic suddenly appeared at her side, bouncing up and down on the balls of his feet.

“How’s it going, Princess?”

“You should be resting,” Amy chided with a roll of her eyes. 

“C’mon, Ames,” Sonic whined—though playfully—and Amy noticed in her peripheral that her father grimaced at the nickname, “You need anything delivered to the other side of the Kingdom in less than a minute? Anything important? Anything—”

“What about those books I gave you?”

Sonic groaned. That answered that question; he most certainly set them down pretty much immediately after Amy handed them to him.

“Go read the books,” Amy commanded. “I don’t understand the ancient language like you do, but I’m sure they’re full of important information.”

“Nah,” Sonic replied.

Amy tried to suppress a laugh. “You’re going to disobey a direct order?”

“I’m the Wind Spirit,” Sonic replied with a shrug.

“Ah, pulling the status card,” Amy said, and she couldn’t help but find humor in it. She wasn’t entirely sure if the Wind Spirit had any power to refuse an order from a Royal, but she didn’t push it. “Fine. You can help, but you must remain by my side.”

Amy glanced at her father. She felt a strange rush of satisfaction to see that he, very obviously eavesdropping on their conversation, was absolutely fuming. And he was powerless to do anything about it.

While Amy had given up on making him rest in bed, instead allowing Sonic to “help” but remain at her side, she’d essentially won. After all, the main task Amy was doing was overseeing distribution, giving out the occasional orders to keep things moving along. She wasn’t in on the action.

And Sonic figured that out pretty quickly. It wasn’t long until he was fidgeting and whining. At one point he had even tried to just walk away; but Amy grabbed him by the arm and yanked him back to her side.

She had to admit: when Sonic’s restlessness and fidgeting wasn’t frustrating, it was incredibly adorable.

“Yo, Knux!” Sonic called out when Knuckles stopped by where the caravan had parked to pick up another crate of supplies, “Need any help?”

“Yeah, actually, we—” Knuckles began,

“Sorry,” Amy cut in, “He’s under strict orders to rest, so he can heal.”

“Save me,” Sonic whined, and Knuckles laughed.

“Sorry, bud,” Knuckles replied, “I can’t undermine royal authority.”

There was a brief moment of silence.

“Well, I probably can,” Sonic said, turning to Amy. “I order you to, uh, order me… to… let me help out.”

Amy stared at him, bewildered, then broke into laughter.

“Sonic,” She said between breaths, “You can’t order royalty around.”

“You don’t know that,” he defended, snickering a little, “The Wind Spirit is divine. Maybe it says so in the books that you can’t read.”

“Oh, you mean the books you _chose not_ to read? How about you go read them and come back when you figure it out?”

Sonic whined. Meanwhile, Knuckles returned to his task, eventually vanishing from sight.

Sonic dropped down onto one knee and took Amy’s hand within his own, gazing up at her with wide, sparkling green eyes.

“Your Highness, I am begging you; _please_ allow me to help out, I need to _do_ something or I might very well go insane—”

Needless to say, the rest of the afternoon went along those lines. Though the gash on Sonic’s leg had sealed up quickly, his damaged ribs were still healing, and the last thing Amy wanted was to have him strain that injury further. In the cold winter breeze, Amy kept her hands inside the pockets of her coat, thumbing her fingers absentmindedly over a small velvet box she’d been carrying around for the past few days.

Once she found the right time, she’d take it out. But with all this rebuilding and business to handle, she could barely find a quiet moment.

That evening, Amy retired to her quarters to find that the letter from Gadget was not where she had left it upon her desk. Frantically, she searched everywhere for it. Under the desk, inside drawers, her nightstand, the pockets of all the clothes that hung in her closet—even the clothes she’d tailored for Sonic.

“Have you seen an envelope laying around anywhere?” Amy asked Sonic, who was sitting at her desk chair watching her.

“I saw one before I left to join you outside,” he said. “It was right there.”

He pointed to an empty spot on the desk.

“It—I got a letter from Gadget. Something he wrote to me before he died, and this morning it was on my desk, but now it’s not…”

Sonic hummed in response.

Amy sighed, trying to keep her composure. “That letter was… it contains Gadget’s last words to me. I hadn’t read it yet, and now it’s gone—”

“You hadn’t read it?” He repeated. “Why not?”

“I thought maybe if I just didn’t open it, I could pretend he was still here, because he hadn’t said whatever’s in the letter yet…”

“Ames,” Sonic said, quietly. “I know—I know his death is hard to handle, but… he’s dead. Whatever is in that letter, he wanted you to read it—”

“You’re not helping,” Amy snapped, and Sonic’s eyes widened in surprise, “The letter’s gone. Even if he wanted me to read it, I _can’t_ now!”

“We’ll find it,” He said quietly, not meeting Amy’s eyes, “I’m sure it’ll turn up, somewhere.”

Amy didn’t want to get out of bed the next morning. As it turned out, all her grief was pent up in that little envelope on her desk, and with it gone, the emotions exploded out of her. Sonic had done what he could to console her, but it didn’t help at all.

Sonic had brought her breakfast: a bowl of porridge and fruit. He sat it on her nightstand, and she didn’t touch it.

She vaguely registered him walking out of the room and closing the door gently behind him.

Sonic returned a few hours later. Amy watched as he entered with a rather uncharacteristic frown. In one hand, he carried lunch for Amy, which he set down on her nightstand, replacing the now-cold porridge. In the other hand, he carried an envelope.

“The Chaotix had it,” Sonic said, setting the envelope down beside her lunch. “I’m sorry it got opened. They wanted to see if anything written in it could be used as evidence towards their investigation.”

Amy sat up for the first time that day and gazed down at the envelope. The seal had been broken, letting Gadget’s last words out into the open.

Sonic took the cold bowl of porridge and turned to walk out of the room. At the doorway, he paused, glancing back at the Princess.

“I suggest you read it, Your Majesty.”

_Your Majesty,_ Amy repeated in her head. That was strange.

“Your Highness” was an honorific used for any Royal in line for the throne; “Your Majesty” was an honorific used for the reigning monarch.

She snapped out of her thoughts at the fast metallic clank of armored shoes upon the ground, to find Sonic had raised his Wind Spirit armor a little ways down the hall and broke into a run; his sword clutched in his hand.

Amy picked up the letter, gently pulled it out of its envelope. Her hands were shaking.

_Princess Amy Rose,_

_I write to you with the knowledge that by midnight tonight, I will no longer be alive. I am deeply sorry that things have transpired the way that they have, and you must believe that no matter what anyone says about me, I carry nothing but loyalty and respect to our Kingdom._

_Your Highness, it is imperative that this information finds you. I know who Robotnik’s informant is. The day you stationed me outside the kitchen, I must apologize, I abandoned my post. I overheard voices down the hall, you see—and one of those voices was most distinctly that of Dr. Robotnik himself. I followed the source of the sound until I found an inconspicuous doorway, cracked just slightly._

_Your father, Your Highness._

_At first I wondered if he was trying to negotiate with Robotnik, get him to peacefully leave the Kingdom. But I overheard a large chunk of the conversation, and as much as I hoped that perhaps I was misinterpreting the situation, it came through clear as day. They spoke bluntly._

_“You’re certain the Wind Spirit will be dead come sunrise?” Your father asked._

_“Undoubtedly so,” Robotnik replied. “He’ll be out of your hair, and you can marry off your daughter without conflict; and I’ll be one step closer to unifying the Kingdoms, thanks to your aid.”_

_Unifying the Kingdoms? Your Highness, if our alliances are anything to go by, I’d say we’re already quite unified. What Robotnik means, of course, is total authoritarian control. I am unsure of the King’s motivation to strike a deal with Robotnik, so I beg of you:_

_For the Kingdom’s sake, and your own—Figure out why His Majesty would do such a thing, and put a stop to it before it’s too late._

Amy set the letter down. For a moment she just sat there, the gears turning in her head and she tried to piece everything together. Her father was the informant. Sonic had called her Your Majesty. Sonic had his armor on…

His sword out…

Amy sprung up to her feet and sprinted down the hall as fast as her legs could carry her.


	25. REBUILDING, Act 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a mandatory checkpoint! If you're binge-reading this fic, go drink some water! Grab a snack! Get some sleep if it's late at night, or take some time to rest your eyes from staring at a screen for so long. <3
> 
> CW for graphic depictions of death in this one.

Amy’s first observation as she burst into the throne room was that Sonic clearly didn’t have a plan.

He stood, the King on his knees just in front of him. His blade was pointed at the King’s throat, as other knights in the room looked on in horror. The knights, conflicted after most likely hearing the news of the King’s status as an ally to Robotnik, huddled off to the side, afraid to make any sort of move, to take a position one way or another.

Those knights were tasked to protect the King, Amy mused, so by not acting, they were automatically taking Sonic’s side.

“I don’t wish to kill you,” The Wind Spirit said (though, again, her clearly frazzled boyfriend still held his sword just inches from her father’s throat). “But you’ve committed an atrocity towards this Kingdom that should by all means warrant a punishment of death.”

She could see Sonic weighing his options. On one hand, he’d be Knight of the Wind, Killer of Kings; but on the other hand, if the King were not slain, how would he be brought to justice?

“That’s how he justified killing Gadget in cold blood,” Amy growled, “That a betrayer of the Law cannot be kept alive, that such a treasonous act deserves no trial.”

Sonic looked over at her. In his eyes, she saw emotions swirling, conflicting. Anger at the King, confusion, fear.

“Please, let me explain,” The King pleaded, turning his gaze to Amy. “everything I did, I did to protect our family.”

“Oh, yeah,” Amy snarled, “By bringing in the world’s most dangerous man and allowing him free reign of our Kingdom? By trying to arrange the death of the Wind Spirit, protector of peace? What could have possibly possessed you to do such a thing?”

“He offered, in exchange for passage into our Kingdom, a promise to protect the Royal Family, a means to bring back your mother—”

Amy groaned. Loudly.

“And you seriously believed him? You were willing to allow him to wipe out our entire Kingdom in exchange for the impossible? You’re out of your mind, Father; I know losing her hurt. It hurt me, too! But it’s been _ten years._ ”

She was sick of her father. She’d heard stories aplenty of royal families despising each other; siblings out to kill each other for the right to the throne, reigning monarchs that argued with each other—the pains of arranged marriage.

But she never thought it’d happen to her.

Giggles filled the open air. A King, Queen, and their young daughter spent a brisk spring afternoon out in the castle garden. The daughter, ten years old, ran around and plucked flowers, weaving them into crowns that she placed atop her parents’ heads.

“I dub thee, King of the Lilies,” the young girl said with a broad smile, and the King laughed along.

“It’s beautiful, Amy,” The King said, picking the Princess up off her feet and twirling around in circles. He set her back down, and she wobbled a little, dizzy. “How’d you learn to do this?”

“Some of the kids on Emerald Hill taught me!” Amy was proud, placing her hands on her hips and smiling at her father.

“Ah-ah-ah,” the King chided gently, “You know what I told you about playing with the commoners—”

“Relax, darling,” A soft, feminine voice chimed in. Beside the King was his beloved wife, who knelt down on the ground and lowered her head as her daughter placed a crown of daisies atop her head. “She’s young; Let her have friends. Besides, it wouldn’t hurt for her to understand what happens outside the Castle. She’s not allowed out often as it is.”

“Hm,” The King hummed, “Alright. But no more than once a month.”

The princess cheered, taking her father and mother’s hands and jumping up and down. Later, her father chased her around the garden. The Princess was growing to be quite fast and agile; it was difficult for the King to keep up with her. Still, it wasn’t long before the two of them stood side-by-side, laughing and out of breath. The Princess reached up and adjusted the crown of flowers atop her father’s head.

At eleven years old, Princess Amy Rose skipped into the throne room and flopped down upon her father’s lap, atop the throne.

“Any luck finding the Wind Spirit?” She asked, excitedly. Her father and mother had spent all day scouring the Kingdom for any fourteen-year-old who may carry the Wind Spirit’s divinity within them. Amy, stuck in the castle to do her studies, was antsy to find out the news.

“Unfortunately not,” her father said with a small smile.

“I’m sure She’s out there somewhere,” The Princess said optimistically, “I’m going to study everything I possibly can about the Wind Spirit. _I’ll_ be the one to find Her!”

The King chuckled, placing a gentle hand upon his daughter’s shoulder. The Queen, upon the throne just adjacent to the King’s, smiled.

“I’m sure you will,” She said.

“Yeah!” Amy exclaimed. “Then we’ll be unstoppable against that Ro-butt-nik guy! Me and the Wind Spirit will be best friends. Warrior Princess and Warrior… person.”

“Robotnik is barely a threat,” The Queen said, “there is no cause for concern.”

“Now, come along,” Amy’s father said, “let’s get you to bed. Remember, your lessons start early tomorrow morning. I can’t have you being late again.”

He hoisted Amy up atop his shoulders; she was starting to grow too big to do this, but he smiled through the exertion of carrying his growing daughter, as she laughed and held her hands up above her, fingers just brushing the ceiling.

Those were the happy memories.

“Must you go?” The King whispered to the Queen just inside the castle gates, unaware that their daughter, at twelve years old, eavesdropped from behind a large pillar. “You know how much it scares me when you throw yourself into danger like this.”

“You know I’m not the type to twiddle my thumbs while our armies are risking their lives,” The Queen said. “We must drive this Robotnik man away before his fledgling Empire grows into something much more dangerous.”

The King sighed. “Just promise me you’ll be careful. I don’t want to lose you.”

“I promise,” Amy’s mother replied, taking the King’s hands in her own. “I’ll write to you often; and I’ll be back before you know it.”

Amy had wanted to come along, but a Princess not even yet into her teenage years had no place out on the battlefield. She had taken after her mother quite a bit with an action-seeking, stubborn personality, but even so, the Mobius monarchs both insisted she say within the Kingdom.

A month passed. Her mother wrote three letters.

The fourth letter devastated the King and the Princess. It came from the Royal Guard Captain that accompanied her, announcing the death of Queen Rose. It detailed the circumstances—an ambush of strange machines that cornered her and sent three crossbow bolts directly into her heart. The field medics were unable to save her.

The Captain was executed upon arrival back into Mobius; by order of King Rose.

Things were never the same after that. Her father, in his grief, grew cold and unforgiving, keeping an iron grip upon the Princess out of fear of losing her, too. When the grief was fresh, she understood. She did everything her father told her, obeyed every command to stay within the castle. He assigned her a personal knight, and though she hated being followed around, she kept her head down.

But years upon years passed in this same manner, and as she grew, she became increasingly frustrated. So, in the only way she was able to, she took out her frustration. She harassed and disrespected every knight she was assigned until they were driven to quit their jobs.

Until Sonic came along.

Amy took a deep breath. With her father, clearly unfit to rule, kneeling at the Wind Spirit’s blade, she weighed her options.

Sonic had frozen. He’d hunted plenty of animals during his time out in the woods as a child, but taking the life of another of his kind was something he clearly did not want to do. He would, likely, try to jail the man for life. But that still left a loose end; the King could escape the dungeon, he could use what loyalty any knights still had for him to his advantage. He could still be a threat.

Amy strode forward, her mind made up. She took her place beside Sonic and gazed coldly down at her father for a moment, before turning her attention to Sonic. Two pairs of green eyes met, and Amy placed her hand atop Sonic’s, resting around the hilt of the sacred blade.

It was a brief, reassuring gesture, before she moved her hand to get a direct grip with the sword. She yanked it out of Sonic’s hand. He gasped in surprise, turning his full attention to Amy. He reached to grab his sword back, unsure if such a sacred sword was allowed to be held by another…

“Amy, please—” The King begged.

She plunged the blade deep through her father’s chest.

The King coughed and gasped, blood spilling down to the floor; and it wasn’t long before he fell over to his side. The sword vanished into thin air, its owner beside her watching with shaking hands as the King died, slowly, painfully, right in front of him.

“Your Majesty—” Sonic stammered, gazing wide-eyed at her. He was stunned; the King of Mobius lay dead on the ground by his blade, but by the hands of the Princess.

Queen.

“Let’s get this cleaned up. Make sure he gets a proper burial,” Amy ordered the knights who still hadn’t moved from where they stood a ways away. “And—make sure it goes down in the records that he was assassinated. I don’t want to go down in history as a Princess who killed her own father.”

Amy walked out of the room.

A few minutes of aimless walking found her at the garden, one of the many places within the castle grounds that she would go to put herself at ease. She knelt on the cobblestone pathway in front of a patch of carnations, plucking a few and absentmindedly weaving them together. 

Placing a crown of carnations atop her head, she knelt upon the garden pathway and cried.


	26. CEREMONIES, Act 1

There was a lot to do.

Amy sat hunched over a desk off to the side of the throne room, papers stacked all around her. It was a lot to keep up with, and something she hadn’t quite been fully prepared for. Between the paperwork prepping for her coronation, approving local ordinances, and ensuring her father’s death was portrayed as an assassination and not a family murder, she hadn’t seen proper sunlight in what felt like ages.

Perhaps it was more like a day and a half, but the work piling up as result of her becoming Queen was overwhelming. She couldn’t take the time to go for a walk, or even so much as go the short distance to the dining room; servants brought food to the throne room instead. The only time she left the throne room was to go to sleep in her quarters. Last night, her usually soft, inviting bed felt cold and empty without Sonic’s warm body by her side.

She paused, tapping the end of her quill atop the desk. Where was he? She hadn’t seen him since the death of her father the day prior. He was in the throne room during and after the confrontation, but when she returned once her father’s body was… cleaned up… he was no longer there.

She knew it hadn’t been long since she last saw him, but still, she missed him.

She set her quill down upon the table with a soft thunk, just beside a document she was just about to sign, and stood from her desk abruptly. That was it! Her excuse to get out of this miserable space. She’d go look for the Wind Spirit.

She went to Tails, first.

“Hey,” Amy said as she walked into the blacksmith’s workshop, smiling kindly at the fox (who, upon seeing Amy, immediately dropped everything he was doing and bowed).

“Your Majesty,” he said in greeting, “What can I do for you?”

“Have you seen Sonic anywhere recently?”

“He was here yesterday,” Tails said, “He told me your father was assassinated… are you doing okay?”

The blacksmith gazed at her with soft, empathetic eyes. Baby blue irises that shimmered with worry, nearly the same look he’d wear upon his face when he was concerned about either of his brothers.

“I’m alright,” She said, “I’ll manage.”

“If you need anything at all, don’t be a stranger.” 

“Thank you, Tails,” Amy said. She couldn’t help it; she pulled him into a hug.

“It’s no big deal, really,” He replied with a smile, “You’re basically my sister, y’know? I’d do the same for Sonic or Knuckles.”

“S-sister?” Amy stammered. Did Tails really think that of her? Was she now a part of this rag-tag family the boys had formed?

“Of course! If—I mean, if you’re okay with that, I don’t want to push any boundaries, but… we’ve been through so much together. And with you and Sonic tying the knot, it only makes sense that you’re one of us.”

Tying the knot?

“You… _are_ planning on marrying him, yeah?” Tails asked. Oh, crap. Had she said that last bit aloud?

“Yeah,” Amy breathed with a smile, reaching into her pocket and closing her hand around the small velvet box that had become a familiar weight she carried around everywhere she went.

Tails started organizing a rather messy-looking pile of various tools, placing them back in their proper spots upon shelves, in drawers; whatever organizational system he had in place.

“Well, I won’t bother you any further,” Amy said, “I’m sure you have a lot of work to do. Do you know where Sonic was headed when you saw him yesterday?”

“Nah,” Tails replied, gesturing vaguely with a large wrench in his hand, “but he usually tells me when he’s going somewhere, so he can’t have gone far.”

Amy nodded, then turned to leave.

“Oh!” Tails exclaimed, setting the wrench down, “One more thing before you go. I know you’ve been busy, but there’s a festival in the town square to celebrate the eradication of Eggman. You should go visit, if you can.”

Amy’s eyes widened in surprise. Had she been so busy with paperwork that she hadn’t even realized a celebration was going on?

“Thank you, I’ll definitely try to make an appearance at some point.”

Make an appearance; even if just for a few minutes. Is that really all she could do, these days? Pop in, show her face around town as the new Queen? She missed the days when she could sneak out of the castle and have fun for a whole day.

Amy searched Sonic’s favorite spots to hang out, first. It was quite cold as winter was setting in full force, so she doubted he’d be outside. Still, she checked anyways: his favorite tree, just below the window to her bedchamber, that spot where the roof of the castle dipped down just low enough for him to climb up onto, the training grounds.

She ran into Knuckles in the training grounds, who knelt respectfully, greeted her with a “Hello, Your Majesty,” and exchanged a few pleasantries. She still wasn’t used to this new set of rules. These new formalities. Kneeling instead of bowing, ‘Your Majesty’ instead of ‘Your Highness’… it was slightly unnerving.

“Have you gone to the festival?” Amy asked Knuckles.

“Yeah! It’s pretty great; I went this morning. I invited Sonic and Tails to come along, too, but they both declined. Tails said he had plans to go with Zooey, and I think Sonic may have been waiting to go with you.”

“Oh,” Amy breathed. Why had he not come to her? Perhaps he was just trying to be respectful, let her work.

She continued her search. He wasn’t at the garden, the graveyard, or the courtyard. She checked by the moat, too, though she knew he’d never go anywhere near water, so perhaps that was a silly place to look. He wasn’t in the dining room, nor the library.

Finishing off her rounds about the castle, her hope of finding her beloved dwindling by the minute, she poked her head into the board room.

And there he was. Curse her luck, that this was the last place she looked.

He hadn’t noticed her presence yet, pacing back and forth along the far wall. A chalkboard just off to the side carried messily-scrawled Ancient characters—the only written language that Sonic knew—as well as quite a few old-looking books strewn across the table. 

She leaned against the doorframe and watched him. Through the large windows, light streamed in and illuminated his disheveled blue fur. He wore a simple navy blue tunic, belted at the waist. His black leather boots thumped against the ground with every step he took, back and forth, back and forth. His bare hands were clasped with each other, held up close to his chin, and his tired eyes had heavy, dark bags under them.

A quick glance around the room pinpointed a pair of brown leather fingerless gloves, draped atop the back of a chair nearby. He likely figured nobody would be coming through this room at all, as it was typically vacant when an important meeting wasn’t being held. This was his hiding spot, where he could come to think. And think some more. And, probably, overthink.

He glanced up and spotted Amy standing there, and immediately fumbled, nearly tripping over himself in surprise. He threw his hands behind his back, likely to hide the fact that his gloves weren’t on. Amy suppressed a giggle.

“Your Highness—uh—Your Majesty,” He said, “Hi. Hello. I thought you were—”

“I’m taking a break from my work,” She said, stepping into the room. “And by the looks of things, you ought to, as well.”

He chuckled. “Yeah, I guess so. Tails would be calling me a hypocrite, right about now.”

She thought back to the time when she, Tails, and the newly-discovered Wind Spirit had a moment of respite in the blacksmith’s workshop. When Tails offered that the Wind Spirit take a nap on his cot, which Tails didn’t want Sonic to know existed, because he’d give him an earful about working too hard. That was before they knew that the Wind Spirit and Sonic were one and the same.

“What have you been up to?”

He sighed.

“Too much. Catching up on all this legal stuff. Trying to figure out what my past lives have done during wartime, uh… brainstorming ideas for how to…” He paused, chuckled quietly, “make your coronation a good one. The best it can be. We deserve a happy memory right now.”

Amy glanced at the chalkboard. The writing was nearly illegible—well, to Amy, it _was_ illegible, as she didn’t know how to decipher the strange writing system that was the language of the Ancients. But rather, illegible in the sense that the markings and symbols drawn were quite messy. They didn’t follow neat lines across the chalkboard, the strokes of chalk that made up each symbol were shaky and lacked the confidence of a seasoned writer. If anything, it looked as though a child had written it.

She wasn’t surprised by that, though. He had no need to write often; he likely only did this to help organize his thoughts.

“Care to share?” Amy asked.

Sonic glanced at the chalkboard, following Amy’s line of sight, then looked back at her, and smiled. “Hah, then it wouldn’t be a surprise!”

“Oh, dear,” Amy teased with a roll of her eyes. “Now I’m worried.”

The Wind Spirit laughed. Amy’s heart warmed at the sound; she hadn’t realized how much she needed that right now. His optimism, his pride, his smile. She approached him, placing her hands upon his waist. Slowly, the two of them closed the distance between each other, meeting for a kiss.

As she kissed him, snaking her hands around his back, one of his ungloved hands gently cupped around her cheek, his thumb gently brushing back and forth. He leaned into her, his other hand finding her shoulder, pulling her close.

He needed this as much as she did, Amy realized. He was just as exhausted, just as stressed as she was. His muscles were tense; but she could feel him relaxing under her touch.

They pulled apart, but it felt like neither of them wanted to. Her arms remained around him, and he didn’t move his hands from her shoulder and her face. He leaned his forehead against hers and closed his eyes.

“Are you okay?” He asked quietly, his voice just barely above a whisper. 

“I’m hanging in there,” she replied, matching his volume, “It’s a lot to handle all at once.”

“Take a break.”

“Only if you do, too.”

He pressed soft kisses against her forehead, her cheek, her neck. “Mm’kay.”

“There’s a festival going on in town,” She said, pulling away from him and taking him by the hand. “Tails told me about it. Would you like to go with me?”

He didn’t respond verbally, instead grinning and pulling her excitedly towards the door.

“Uh-uh,” Amy said, “Hang on.”

Sonic paused, glancing back at her questioningly. Amy pointed over to his gloves, which were still draped over the top of the nearby chair.

“Oh,” Sonic stammered, his face flushing red, “R-right. Yeah.”

He put on the gloves, and the two of them hurried out of the castle, hand in hand.

“Aren’t your fingers cold?” She asked as the two of them made their way down the street towards the town square. He always preferred to wear fingerless gloves, but with the cold winter air and the brisk breeze that ruffled their fur occasionally, she wondered how he wasn’t miserable.

He grinned; a rather snarky one. He gave her hand a small squeeze, then said, “I have you to keep them warm.”

The town square was full of lively music and colorful decorations. Large crowds filled the streets, and vendors, set up in rows of stalls along the edge of the street, sold a wide variety of goods from food, to flower arrangements, to handmade toys.

Everyone in the town square went silent and bowed when they realized they were in the presence of their Queen—though not officially coronated, not yet, she was still understood to be the new ruler.

“Please,” Amy said, “At ease, everybody. Enjoy yourselves.”

Slowly, people resumed their activities.

“Excuse me, sir,” A young kid ran up to Sonic and tugged at his tunic, “Are you the Wind Spirit?”

Sonic smiled. “The one and only,” he replied.

The kid’s face lit up. She threw her head over her shoulder, looking over to where two other kids were wrestling with each other. 

“Mavis! Embry! Come here! It’s the Wind Spirit!”

The two other young children froze in their place, one pinning the other to the ground, then the two of them hurried to their feet and ran over.

“Is it true that you can run as fast as the wind? Can you take out an entire army of badniks all at once? Do you live in the castle? What’s the biggest badnik you’ve ever fought against?”

Amy smiled, wrapping her hands around Sonic’s arm as and watching fondly as he interacted with the kids, trying his best to keep up with the bombardment of questions from the eager, fascinated children. Sonic, it turned out, was really good with kids. It was quite endearing.

“Can you really summon a sword out of thin air?” One of them asked.

“Yes,” Sonic replied, “I’ll show you. Stand back.”

The three children stepped back a few paces and watched with wide eyes as Sonic reached out with his free hand. A breeze ruffled his quills, swirling around him, coalescing into a shimmering golden-hilted blade.

The kids stood there in shock and awe for a few moments.

“That’s so cool!” One kid exclaimed.

“Can I touch it?” Another asked, and Sonic shook his head. 

“I wouldn’t want you hurting yourselves,” the Wind Spirit said, letting his sword disappear into the breeze.

It was clear Sonic wasn’t used to being the center of attention, but he enjoyed it quite a bit. After a little bit of convincing from Amy, Sonic agreed to don his full armor (minus the helmet, which he had always preferred not to wear).

Amy purchased a single yellow flower from a vendor, tucking it gently into the quills just beside Sonic’s ear. To the tune of high-energy music being performed nearby, they swayed and twirled around each other. Sonic stumbled quite a few times; he wasn’t much of a dancer, he’d said. But that didn’t stop the two of them from laughing and having fun together.

She noticed out of her peripheral vision that the street they were dancing in, once full of other people, had cleared. The commoners had given them space (and, of course, were more than interested in watching the new Queen and the Wind Spirit carry on together in the streets—something her father, even when her mother had been alive, had never done publicly).

“Wind Spirit!” One commoner called out. “Perform the Ceremonial Dance!” And soon, everyone in the crowd was buzzing with excitement, calling out to him. 

Sonic faltered, and Amy stood beside him, a hand on his shoulder. He turned to look at her.

“I don’t know the Ceremonial Dance,” he whispered.

“Yes, you do,” She replied. “Just like you know the language of the Ancients. Every Wind Spirit knows it.”

“But—”

“Besides,” Amy continued, “One of the most beautiful things, so I’ve heard, is watching a Wind Spirit who’s never performed the dance before. There’s a moment where everything just… clicks. They want to see it.”

She stepped off to the side of the street, joining the crowd. Commoners parted to allow her space.

Sonic stood there for a moment, unmoving. The nearby musicians, which consisted of a few different stringed instruments and one with a large drum, had stopped the song they were currently performing, switching to a different piece.

It started off with long, low tones of an upright bass, the pulse of the drum. Amy watched as Sonic’s ears perked up, angling slightly towards the source of the music. An expression of deep thought crossed his face. A slight frown.

A violin joined the mix, playing a fast, upbeat tune. Sonic’s eyes widened in recognition. He’d never heard this song in his lifetime, but he’d heard it in many others.

She watched as he took a moment to feel the rhythm. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath. Then he found a spot close to the edge of the crowd and found his first position. Four beats passed, his eyes still closed, his brow furrowed as he calculated what his next move would be. Then, he took a step, finding his next stance; his arms extended out to each side, his knees bent. Four more beats passed, and he moved again.

He sped up. With every two beats, he’d change his stance, making his way around a large circular pattern.

Historically, the Wind Spirit’s Ceremonial Dance was performed in an open field, with tall rectangular rocks marking a circular space. The Wind Spirit would use the circle of rocks as a guide, dancing around the circumference of that space. The dance was only ever performed in places like this, places deemed sacred. But now, Sonic was performing it in the intersection of Green Hill and Stardust Avenue. The dance was fast and upbeat, full of turns, hops, and skips; moving with the freedom of the air itself. She’d seen many performances of the Ceremonial Dance in the past, performed by professional dancers who had spent their lives studying the books that depicted each key stance that made up this performance.

However, one could master every move in the books, but it never quite matched up to seeing a true Wind Spirit perform, because every Wind Spirit would inject a bit of their own personality into the dance.

And Sonic, still finding his bearings, was doing the bare minimum—moving from pose to pose. He was doing even less than the bare minimum, as he still only moved about two beats at a time.

A harmonizing violin very quietly pushed itself into the music, playing single notes at a time to compliment the tones played by the upright bass.

Sonic went a step further. He moved quicker, began bringing in some of the more complex footwork. The hops, the skips, the turns. Through it all, though, it was clear he was still thinking about what his next move would be.

He made his second lap around the circle. And then, a third. With every lap, he grew more and more confident in his movements.

The music swelled. A smile grew across Sonic’s face, his eyes opened. A new melody rose above the rest of the instruments, and a gust of wind pushed its way through the street. And, just like that, as if a light had been illuminated within his brain, Sonic stopped analyzing.

It had clicked.

He laughed, his eyes bright with energy as he danced, taking a fourth, fifth lap. He worried less about hitting the key poses and began adding his own movements in; some extra turns, bigger leaps, and, much to the crowd’s excitement and surprise, a few flips. Amy watched in awe and wonder at the performance, and gasped as the wind seemed to swirl around them in this circular pattern as well.

The Wind danced with him. He moved so swiftly, so fluidly, and the breeze followed his every move. Amy had heard stories passed down about how something like this would happen during a true Ceremonial Dance; but she’d never truly believed it, as something so magical seemed impossible. And yet, here it was, happening just before her eyes.

She didn’t think it was possible, but in that moment she managed to fall even deeper in love.

As the music slowed down, so did he, until he came to a standstill in the center of the street, out of breath, the crowds of commoners around him cheering. Amy ran towards him, pulling him into a hug and twirling him around, a bright smile on her face.

“Not a dancer, my ass,” Amy said softly, and Sonic laughed.

“Language, Ames. We’re in public.”

“Nobody heard,” She said, pressing a kiss against his cheek (an action to which a few commoners aww-ed).

This was the moment she’d been looking for; she could feel it.

Slowly, she lowered herself onto one knee, much to Sonic’s surprise. He opened his mouth, about to say something, but she didn’t let him; because before he could get a word out, she reached into her pocket and pulled out that velvet box.

She held it up to him, watching as his eyes widened. She popped the lid open, revealing a beautiful golden ring. It was rather simple, knowing Sonic wouldn’t want anything too flashy, but it had beautiful engravings upon it, intricate swirls that looked like the wind itself.

Amy had gotten it custom-made. She’d carefully measured his finger while he slept one night, and took those measurements to an expensive jeweler. If Sonic knew how much she’d spent on the ring, he’d certainly give her an earful. He didn’t need to know.

“Sonic,” She said, “You’ve been by my side through the good and the bad. You’re so loyal, so brave, so honest. I would be honored if you’d stay by my side forever.”

Sonic held his hands up to his mouth, thoroughly surprised.

“Will you marry me?” She asked him. 

She could see him fighting back tears in his eyes; and speechless, he nodded. He reached out, taking her by the hand and pulling her back up to her feet, then pulled her into a tight hug. For a moment, the two of them remained like this, forgetting about the large crowd of townsfolk who were watching, the journalists who were scrawling out every juicy detail of the moment, local artists who sketched them in their notebooks.

They broke their embrace, and Amy held her hand out. Sonic placed his hand in hers, and she rather awkwardly pulled the ring out of the box with her free hand. Sonic let his golden armor vanish into the air, leaving his hand unobstructed by the gauntlet that covered it. He shivered in the cold air. 

Amy slid the ring onto his finger and he smiled, placing his arm around her waist.

The two of them forgot about their stress, their worries. They danced in the streets and partook of food and drink sold by the vendors until long after the sun had set. In the moonlight, they stumbled back to the castle and flopped down beside each other atop Amy’s bed. 

“Maybe we drank too much,” Sonic giggled as Amy buried her face in Sonic’s chest, feeling the rise and fall with each breath he took.

“ _You_ drank too much,” Amy said with a smile. “I have the livers of a… uh, a mountain lion.”

“A mountain lion?” Sonic repeated with a snort. “Do mountain lions even have livers?”

“Of course they do, idiot,” Amy replied.

“Okay, okay, but when you wake up in the morning with a headache—” he hiccupped, “Don’t say I didn’t warn ya, Your Highness.”

“Highness? This is the Queen of Mobius you’re speaking to,” She teased.

He closed his eyes. “Majesty is too formal. I don’t like it.”

“Then why do you keep saying it?”

“ ‘cuz I’m your knight,” He whispered.

“Knight?” Amy lifted her head off her chest and pressed a kiss on his cheek, “You’re not my knight, Sonic, you’re my fiancé.”

“Hmm,” he hummed. “I can be your knight, too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, a few notes about this chapter!
> 
> Fun fact: The ceremonial dance? That was the scene that inspired this ENTIRE au. But also, like, when i first came up with it, it was a LOT different. I was originally gonna have the ceremonial dance be in the setting that i said was the "standard" place that the dance took place in- and it was going to be how sonic found out he was the wind spirit in the first place. It was a whole deal that would have happened in Apotos, involving a visit to Professor Pickle, local Wind Spirit expert, and after being introduced to the concept of the ceremonial dance sonic would sneak out to the sacred ceremony space in the middle of the night to try it himself (unbeknownst to him, followed by Amy & Professor Pickle).
> 
> but the story has evolved quite a lot since that initial concept, and i'm really glad I still got to have this scene in it, even if it ended up a lot different!
> 
> There's also a very specific song I had in mind when writing this dance scene. The song that inspired the scene that inspired the AU? if you're interested, this song is the vibe I had in mind from this AU's conception: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9tjdswqGGVg
> 
> Thanks for sticking with me through this fic!! This was a really important chapter to me just because of its concept as the origin of this entire AU, so I hope you enjoyed it! And i hope you'll continue to stick with it to the end! I have nooo clue how long this fic will turn out to be, but we'll be reaching the climax soon-ish. Probably.


	27. CEREMONIES, Act 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> enjoy another happy chapter :)

Sonic was nothing if not persistent.

Amy had learned this early on; when he was passionate about something, he threw his whole being into it. That extended from knighthood, to running, to planning Amy’s coronation. The guy, bless him, knew absolutely nothing about the ins and outs of royal ceremonies, but he did everything he could to make sure Amy’s coronation as Queen was the best it could possibly be. He brought on the assistance of royal advisors, priests, and artisans. Amy wasn’t supposed to know the goings on of the coronation prep; but, if Amy was being honest, Sonic wasn’t particularly good at being discreet.

That being said, she didn’t know a vast majority of the details. But she was smart, and perhaps lucky, and was able to put pieces together based on what she saw of him holding hushed meetings in the board room with the advisors, carpenters, and once even with a florist.

She had no idea what to expect until the moment she stood upon a white-painted wooden platform in a grassy clearing just north of the Kingdom, three days after she’d proposed to Sonic. The surrounding space was packed with nobility and commoners alike; plenty of room allotted for both seated and standing guests. Around the whole space stood columns that held up an intricately built lattice roof. Around her were a large quantity of flowers; most noticeably roses of all different colors. White, red, yellow, and pink.

It was painfully cheesy, with her family name being Rose; but still, she found it adorable, especially knowing that it was likely Sonic who had came up with such an idea.

As an old priest, standing close to the front of the stage, droned on about divine right and a whole bunch of other religious mumbo-jumbo as his part of the ceremony, Amy scanned the audience. It didn’t take much looking to spot Sonic, sitting in the front row of seats, leaning his elbow atop the stage in front of him with a proud, adoring look on his face. Amy blushed.

He was dressed in a well-fitting suit. It wasn’t his preferred style of dress, but the sleek black jacket and slacks were a good look on him. His quills were neatly combed, and Amy couldn’t help but notice that despite the formal attire he still wore that brown silk scarf. It wasn’t meant for a formal occasion, but he made it work. He cleaned up well.

Sonic, despite being the Wind Spirit, had no place in such a ceremony as this. He didn’t carry the poise of a nobleman, to put it simply. His casual, laid-back attitude, his refusal to wear gloves that covered the tips of his fingers, and his boundless energy would be seen as an embarrassment in such a formal setting. Amy had no qualms with his, well, lack of royal decorum, but the rest of the Kingdom? It would send a bad message.

Sonic knew this. He’d coordinated this ceremony almost entirely, but the fact that he’d sat out of the ceremony itself solidified that.

Amy hated ceremonies like this. Any celebration held within the ranks of nobility was bland and boring; in comparison to the lively festival in the streets, this was (as Sonic would put it) a total snooze-fest. She found herself starting to drift off; the only thing that kept her anchored was Sonic, with a big smile on his face, fidgeting and tapping his foot like an excitable puppy just off the stage.

How could he be so excited? Everybody else looked bored out of their minds: even Knuckles and Tails, who sat on either side of him. Was it because he had spent so much time putting this together, wanting it to be perfect? Was it because he was excited for her ascension to the throne? Was it because he’d simply never attended a formal ceremony like this before?

Amy knelt in front of the royal advisor who had finished up some drawn-out speech about the legacy of the Rose family.

“I crown thee,” The advisor said as a servant hurried over with a crown atop a plush pillow, “Queen Amy Rose of Mobius.”

The advisor placed the crown atop Amy’s head. The audience clapped—a soft, polite clap that one would often hear during something such as a golf tournament. In a fleeting thought, she wondered if Sonic would jump from his seat, whooping and hollering, but was admittedly relieved when she saw out of the corner of her eye that he had read the room. He may have not known much about the intricacies of noble behavior, but he seemed to grasp the basics when he needed to. Don’t be hyperactive, don’t be casual, don’t be… well, don’t be Sonic.

The crown was beautiful, with ornately woven gold decorated with vivid rubies. It was similar to the tiara she wore as Princess, but much more intricate—as well as much taller. This crown was once worn by her mother. Usually a Royal would have their crown custom made, but Amy insisted on wearing her mother’s. It was the last thing she had of her family. Maybe someday she’d get her own crown made, but for now she wished to honor her mother who died too soon, her father who was broken by grief. 

There was a reception after the coronation itself. The stage— which had been built on wheels—was carefully moved out of the way by a few servants. Other servants set up tables around the space, which cooks placed food upon.

Sonic approached her and offered her a goofy parody of a regal bow, which involved a circling gesture with his hand before bowing perhaps a bit too low, one hand placed over his chest and the other extended to its full reach to his side.

“Your Majesty,” He said, with an obnoxiously snobby tone to his voice. “Have you been enjoying yourself thus far?”

“Chaos, Sonic,” Amy muttered, “Quit it. You’re embarrassing yourself.”

“Or am I embarrassing _you_?” He rose from his bow.

“That, too.”

Sonic laughed, pulling Amy into a soft hug. “You looked miserable up on stage.”

“Was it really that obvious?”

“Only if one looked closely enough,” he said. His ear flicked. “Did you—did you not like it?”

He looked nervous.

“You did a wonderful job putting this together,” Amy said, placing a hand reassuringly on his shoulder, “It’s just that royal ceremonies are always a drag.”

“Fair enough.”

“You know, it’s not common for a reception to happen after a ceremony like this.”

“Ah, what’s the harm in it?” Sonic replied with a carefree shrug, “People seem to be happy to mingle.”

“It’s just unconventional, is all.” She reached up and adjusted his scarf around his neck, fussed with the collar of his jacket. “But then again, when do you _ever_ do something the conventional way?”

“Never hurts to add a little flair,” he said with a shrug. “Champagne?”

“Please.”

Sonic walked off—she noticed he was about to run, use a burst of Wind Spirit-enhanced speed to get to the bar table quicker, before restraining himself—and returned a few moments later with two glasses of champagne. He handed one to Amy.

“To a successful reign,” he said, raising his glass in the air.

“To a successful reign,” She echoed, tapping her glass against his.

She found Sonic that evening sitting atop the castle roof, gazing out at the setting sun.

“Aren’t you cold?” She called up to him. She was out of her formal dress and bundled up in much warmer attire; a fur-lined jacket and thick boots. Sonic, also having changed out of his suit after the coronation, was not wearing much more than his scarf, gloves, and shoes. 

“Yeah,” he said, gazing down at her from where he sat upon the rooftop, “But I like feeling the wind in my fur, y’know?”

Amy chuckled. “Alright, Mr. Wind Spirit, I’ll leave you to it.”

“Wanna join me?” He asked, cocking his head slightly to the side. 

Amy hummed. “Sure,” She said, and Sonic reached out a hand to help her climb up to the roof. She settled beside him, leaning her head atop his shoulder.

“You know,” Amy said, “It’s unfitting of a noble to wear so little clothes.”

It wasn’t uncommon for her kind to dress in not much aside from their shoes, gloves, and their own fur. But nobility prided themselves on the latest fashions, the finest silks and cottons one could afford.

“Meh,” Sonic said, noncommittally, “I’m no noble.”

“You’re the Wind Spirit,” She said.

“That means nothing, Ames. The Wind Spirit can be anybody.”

“Fiancé to the Queen?”

“Agh,” he grumbled, “Yeah, okay, okay. I’ll go put something on.”

He shifted, about to stand, but Amy held him firmly in place. “You like feeling the wind in your fur,” she said.

Sonic laughed.

The two of them sat in silence for a while, watching the sun disappear over the horizon, watching as stars illuminated the sky.

“Hey,” Sonic whispered. The two of them now lay down upon the roof, cuddling close to one another, gazing up a the stars. “What are we going to do about Eggman?”

“I’m thinking about calling the other Kingdoms together for a full-on raid of the Empire. Hit him hard and fast, drive him out of our lands.”

“Hm,” he hummed thoughtfully, “We’ll have to call another alliance meeting, yeah?”

“Yeah,” She said, “But I cannot afford to leave my Kingdom now that I’m Queen, and I’m less worried about convincing anyone to join our cause, so letters of invitation shall suffice this time around.”

“I could run,” he said, “I could get as far as Apotos in an hour. Maybe less.”

His newfound speed power, thanks to his realization that he was the Wind Spirit, was incredibly convenient for things like this.

“No,” Amy said nonetheless, “I don’t want you traveling alone. Especially in the mountains.”

“Aw, come on, Ames,” Sonic said, sitting up, “It’d take me a day at most to get the invitations out. I’d be home by sunset. You won't even notice I'm gone.”

“Sonic,” Amy said with a sigh, sitting up as well and facing him, “You don’t have good handling on ice. If you slip and fall and hurt yourself, all alone—"

“I won’t.”

And his confidence, the gentleness of his voice, the way he reached out and took her hands in his… She found herself convinced.

“Fine,” she said, “But wait until after the wedding, okay? And I expect you to stop back in Mobius and check in with me after you visit each Kingdom.”

“Okay, okay,” He said. “Come, let’s go inside. It’s getting cold.”

“It’s been cold, silly.” 

“It’s getting cold-er.”

Sonic stood, and just as Amy got to her feet, he swept her into his arms, hopping down from the roof with ease. She leaned her head against his chest, letting him carry her all the way back to her quarters.


	28. OFFENSE, Act 1

“Do you think I’ll be like my father?” Amy asked, pacing back and forth in the Blacksmith’s workshop. It had been perhaps a week since Amy’s coronation, and she was nervous about being Queen.

The last thing she wanted to be like was her father. But something deep down within her, compassionate and afraid, felt guilty about killing him. Something in her wanted to forgive him; he was family, after all.

“No,” Tails replied. “You’re so kind and considerate of others. Pardon my language, Amy, but he was a bit of an asshole.”

“He was grieving—”

“Ames,” Sonic cut in from where he lounged atop Tails’ worktable, subsequently forcing the two-tailed fox to take a break from his current project, “Don’t try to justify it. You said it yourself, your mother passed ten years ago. He should have moved on.”

Amy sighed. “You’re right,” She said, rubbing her temples. “He sucked. He did some really, really awful things, I just—"

“You’re trying to find a good person in him after his death,” Sonic said, “Tell me this, Ames. Do you miss him?”

“No.”

Amy was writing out wedding invitations later that day. It was going to be a small one, the two of them had decided; very quiet, private, just their closest friends and family. She’d written out an invitation for Tails and Knuckles already—perhaps it was a bit weird to give a written invitation to people who could just be verbally invited, but Amy wanted to make it feel more important. It _was_ important! 

Next on her list was Blaze, as well as Vanilla and her daughter Cream. She faltered. Should she invite Shadow, too? She didn’t know him very well, but she didn’t want him to feel left out. He could always disregard the invitation if he didn’t want to come. He was so isolated, withdrawn… perhaps if he knew he had people willing to extend the hand of friendship, he’d come out of his shell a bit more. With a shrug, she penned out an invitation to the King of Ark.

Each invitation included a plus one. She wondered if Blaze would bring that noble she had informed Amy via a friendly letter that she had started courting. What was his name again? Gray? It was some sort of color… No, not Gray. More metallic. Silver. She and the Queen of Sol often exchanged letters, just informing each other often of very mundane things; she had been very excited about her new partner. The last correspondence happened perhaps a month ago; since then, it’s gotten increasingly harder to get letters transported, with Robotnik’s presence increasing in strength by the day.

…How would she get these invitations mailed?

She snapped out of her thoughts. There was a soft creak of the throne room’s large door being opened.

“Your Majesty,” A voice of a servant called out, echoing through the spacious room, “You have a visitor.”

Amy paused. Anybody within the Castle would have just walked in without formal announcement. A commoner with a grievance, perhaps? Someone from a neighboring Kingdom?

“Let them in,” She said, and got up from the desk she was at, to go take her place atop the throne she’d been, admittedly, avoiding sitting upon.

“Hello, Princess Rose of Mobius,” A sultry, feminine voice spoke as a bat dressed in highly regal, but very practical, clothes: A button-up shirt, gloves laced with pink accents that stretched all the way to her elbows, slacks, tall boots.

“Queen,” Amy corrected, trying to get a read on this individual. She was clearly of nobility, but no noble she’d ever seen around Mobius. The fact that she had not known her to be Queen must mean she was from somewhere that the news had not yet reached. Apotos, maybe? 

“My name is Rouge,” The bat said with a bow, “I hail from the Kingdom of Ark. Royal advisor to the King, professional spy in charge of keeping tabs on Robotnik.”

Ah, Ark.

“Oh,” Amy breathed. What was someone from Ark doing here? “Did the King send you?”

“Indeed,” she said, “I just returned from a mission deep into the Empire’s territory; the Doctor is plotting to launch another attack upon your Kingdom. He’s quite bent on eradicating the Wind Spirit; and with the knowledge he now possesses after his raid on Apotos—”

“He attacked Apotos!?” Amy exclaimed, standing up abruptly from her throne. How had she not known? What kind of Queen was she if she could not protect her allies?

“If you’re worried about why you weren’t called on to help, it’s simply that you were too far away. The Queen reached out to her nearest ally. Us.”

That made sense. Amy nodded slowly, sitting back down.

“I apologize for interrupting,” She said, “please continue.”

“Robotnik raided Apotos with a very specific goal in mind. The prestigious university that lies within that Kingdom’s borders has a vast amount of knowledge and research about the Wind Spirit; He stole everything he could from that university, then retreated.”

Amy frowned. Why would Robotnik want to steal information?

“As someone who spied upon his activity back within the Empire, I know that he stole this information to find a way to destroy the reincarnation cycle, to end the Wind Spirit for good.”

It’s like Rouge had read her mind. And it was not an answer she wanted to hear.

“Thank you,” Amy said, taking a deep, steadying breath. Sure, maybe the madman wanted to kill her beloved Sonic. And sure, maybe he had a plan to rid the world of the Wind Spirit once and for all. But that didn’t mean they didn’t still have a fighting chance; it just meant that an attack upon the Empire would need to happen sooner rather than later.

(It would mean delaying the wedding.)

“I must make my way back to my Kingdom,” Rouge said, “But it was a pleasure to meet you.”

“May I ask you a favor, Rouge?” Amy asked. “If you could tell King Shadow to gather the other Royals and meet here as soon as possible, that would be wonderful. We’ll need to meet, figure out a plan of action.”

She would have taken Sonic up on his offer of running to each of the Kingdoms, but he had disappeared to go on a jog an hour and a half ago and was yet to return. Rouge, with the ability to fly, could get to Ark much faster than anyone on foot; and once there, Shadow could simply zap himself and the other Royals over here.

“Of course, hun,” Rouge said, then threw a laid-back wave over her shoulder and exited the throne room.

Amy glanced at her pocketwatch; it’s been quite long since Sonic had left to go on his run. With his newfound speed, he could go practically anywhere he wanted. Perhaps he had gone to Sol to visit Blaze, or perhaps Apotos. Did he know about the attack that happened there? Maybe Queen Vanilla told him. Maybe she was telling him about it right this very moment. That was it, he was just out socializing; there was no cause for concern. 

She was just worrying because of the news about Robotnik, that was all. He could handle himself just fine.

So when she awoke in a cold, empty bed for the next two consecutive days, her anxiety skyrocketed. She spoke to Tails and Knuckles, who both said sometimes Sonic just likes to run off for a few days and that they were sure he’d come back soon.

King Shadow arrived with Blaze and Vanilla that morning, and she gathered them in the board room to talk over battle plans. 

“He plans to destroy the Wind Spirit in Her entirety,” She reported to her allies, “And then use the lack of a legendary warrior to his advantage, taking over all of our Kingdoms.”

Shadow already knew this, of course. It was from his Kingdom that she received the news.

“I promised Maria I would do everything in my power to preserve the Wind Spirit. But even without the Her,” Shadow said, “We all still have armies.”

“And he has an endless supply of badniks.” Vanilla chimed in, “He can keep manufacturing his machines until all four of our Kingdoms are overwhelmed. Then what? We need Mobius’s Knight of the Wind.”

“Where is he?” Blaze asked, gazing over at Amy with expectant eyes.

“He… He went for a run a few days ago, and I haven’t seen him since.”

“Robotnik’s had a heavier presence as of recently, attacking anyone who dares travel by foot across Kingdom lines,” Blaze said quietly.

Shadow huffed a loud, frustrated sigh, rubbing his temples. “We need to expedite this mission,” He growled, “Before it’s too late.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah.... plot.
> 
> Shorter chapter than usual, oops! This chapter was fighting me a little, being a transition between the happy lil interlude and the Actual Plot That Is Still Happening. These next few chapters will be fun ones!


	29. OFFENSE, Act 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "ugh, finally," you whisper under your breath, "The author of Spirit of the Wind has incorporated characters other than Sonic and Amy into the story."

Vanilla had been the one to suggest a small, covert operation. Something that wouldn’t draw too much attention—get in, rescue Sonic, then signal the remaining armies (who would be staged nearby) to attack. Robotnik wouldn’t know what hit him.

So Amy found herself accompanying Shadow, Knuckles, Rouge, and Blaze into the Empire’s territory. It was nice, she gathered, not to have to argue or insist on going on such a mission, as she would have had to do if her father were still in charge. Now that she was queen, she decided where she went—and she was a woman of action.

“If we follow the edge of the woods here,” Blaze said, pointing to a map as the five travelers hunkered down behind a bush to get their bearings, “We should find our way to the heart of the Empire rather quickly.”

“It may not be a bad idea to travel inside the woods,” Rouge added, “for extra cover.”

“If I’m remembering correctly from what Sonic told me after his trip to Mystic Jungle,” Amy piped in, taking the map in her hands, “It was around here that the badnik presence started getting denser, more dangerous.”

She pointed to a spot on the map, about halfway between their current position and their destination: the heart of the Empire, a factory built of pure metal. Robotnik’s home base.

“Let’s get going,” Shadow said, standing from where he crouched beside the others, “We have no time to lose.”

Shadow started walking. The others hurried to pack up the map and catch up with Shadow, who had not slowed to wait for them. They ducked into the cover of the woods, staying by the edge to guide them, and began the long, arduous trek towards the factory. It took until midday to reach the point where the badnik presence increased drastically; and another few hours to reach the factory itself.

By that point, Amy had smashed more badniks than she cared to count, her feet hurt, and she was dehydrated. She grabbed her waterskin and took a swig.

“Now what?” Knuckles asked, peering through the thin layer of trees between the group and Robotnik’s lair.

“We sneak in, hun,” Rouge said with a smile, “I’ve been here before. Follow my lead.”

She placed a hand on Knuckles’ shoulder, just a fleeting touch, before pressing forward; and Amy noticed that Knuckles blushed slightly.

Rouge led the way up to the roof, and over to an exhaust vent and opened the hatch, waving away the thick, ugly smoke that billowed out of it.

“You’re going to want to hold your breath,” She said, “You don’t want this stuff in your lungs. It’ll be about thirty seconds before we reach the main ventilation system.”

With a deep gulp of air, they crawled inside, making their way through a narrow tunnel, their views obscured by the disgusting smoke that floated through the vents. At the twenty second mark, they made a sharp right turn, and the exhaust flow started to lighten up a bit. And, just as Rouge had predicted, ten seconds later she was prying open a metal door that separated the exhaust shaft from the air vents. Quickly, they filed in through the door and sealed it behind them.

Amy gasped for air.

Nearby, a vent allowed an obscured view of the room below them; it was full of strange machinery, bright lights not fueled by flame. It appeared to be some sort of laboratory—a laboratory Tails would most certainly want to explore, had he been there. Once Robotnik was defeated, Amy made a mental note to come back here with the blacksmith so he could take notes on Robotnik’s strange technologies.

“There’s a prison hold on the very bottom floor,” Rouge whispered, “If the Wind Spirit is here, he’ll likely be down there.”

As it turned out, a major problem was that in order to get down there, they’d have to traverse vertical air shafts, a feat easily done by Rouge, who had wings to control her descent. The rest of the group would have to wedge themselves between the two walls of the vent and slowly slide themselves down. There was a risk of falling, which could make quite a lot of noise and potentially alert Robotnik.

But, they had no other choice.

Climbing down the first floor of five, Rouge drifted down to the bottom of the drop first, readying herself to catch anyone who fell. Next went Shadow. There wasn’t enough space for him to teleport, so he didn’t risk it; but he very adeptly navigated the drop. Following Shadow was Blaze, then Amy. 

Gripping the sleek metal surface of the shaft was hard, but she found the best way to make her way down was to press her feet against one wall, putting pressure so her back was firm against the other wall. Her muscles burned, but she made her way down, then into the adjacent horizontal shaft. 

Knuckles went after her. He was strong, so Amy had no reason to worry about him. But then Knuckles slipped.

With a loud screech of boots and claws against metal in an attempt to steady himself, the whole group tensed, held their breath. Knuckles, having managed to save himself from falling entirely, clung to the one spot on the wall for a moment, eyes wide.

“You can do it,” Amy dared to whisper up to Knuckles, poking her head out from where she was in the horizontal shaft so she could look directly up at him. “You’re almost there.”

And when Knuckles cleared the shaft, everyone let out a breath of relief, then continued their way through the maze of airways.

Amy dared to peek through every vent’s slats as they crawled through. She wondered, for a moment, if Robotnik was even a man of this realm; he had large screens that depicted images so realistic they couldn’t have been illustrations, lights so bright it felt like she was staring at the sun itself, and, of course, machines that had their own autonomy. Some, she quickly learned, could even speak.

“Doctor,” A metallic voice spoke, and Amy pinpointed its origin coming from a red metallic being with a circular-shaped head, “Our sensors detected an auditory anomaly in vent shaft 4c.”

“Yeah, and something sounded weird, too!” Another metal being said; one with a cube-shaped head and yellow paint.

Robotnik, who was not present in the room but was visible on a screen off to the far end of the room, rolled his eyes at the yellow bot’s comment. “Send some surveillance drones into the vent system,” he commanded.

“Yes, sir!”

Amy cringed, glancing over at the others in front of her, behind her. Knuckles looked particularly guilty, a frown creased across his face, violet eyes gazing down at the metal floor the group crawled upon.

“We’ll have to get out of the vents for the time being,” Blaze whispered. “Let’s find an empty room.”

The five of them made as much headway as they could through the vents—this included successfully descending another floor—before popping out through a vent into a dark laboratory, unused. They huddled underneath a table and waited.

“I hate just sitting around,” Amy grumbled, folding her hands across her chest.

“Suck it up,” Shadow whispered harshly.

“There has to be something we can do—”

“We can’t chance the hallways,” Blaze whispered, “They’re likely monitored, and there will be badniks for sure. It’ll draw too much attention to us.”

They fell silent. Through the vent, they heard a mechanical whirring, saw a flash of light pass by. Amy held her breath, every muscle in her body tense. The drone passed, and a few more minutes ticked by before Rouge waved for them to reenter the vent system.

By the time the group reached the basement floor, Amy was drenched in sweat from the exertion of descending those vertical passages, from the effort of crawling in a confined space. The constant warm breeze through the vent system wasn’t helping.

That was another piece of Robotnik’s technology that Amy couldn’t wrap her head around; a system that kept warm air flowing through the entire building, even on the coldest of winter days.

They dropped to the ground from a vent door, and Amy immediately looked around. Sonic, Sonic, she had to find Sonic. All of the prison cells in the basement were empty, except for one, at the very end of the hall. 

Amy approached the bars. She gazed at the figure that lay on the cold, unforgiving ground, wrists and ankles shackled, blue fur matted with old blood. A metal collar clung around his neck. Hazy green eyes looked up at her for a moment, before his face lit up in recognition and he pulled himself up into a sitting position.

“Ames,” He breathed, his voice raspy but nonetheless excited to see a familiar face, “You’re here!”

Rouge pulled out a hairpin and began to pick the lock of the cell. Sonic’s face faded quickly from excitement to concern.

“Why are you here?” He asked, narrowing his eyes. “It’s too dangerous, you could get hurt—”

“We’re rescuing you,” Amy interrupted him, not letting him get any further with his train of thought. “We’ll fill you in on the details, but long story short we’re moving forward with driving Robotnik out once and for all.”

The cell door popped open. Amy rushed in, taking Sonic into her arms, holding him tight until Rouge shooed her away so she could unlock the shackles.

Once the shackles and collar were gone, Sonic stood, shaking out his arms and jogging in place (poorly concealing a wince as he did). 

“I don’t know what sorcery Eggman is capable of,” Sonic said, rolling his shoulders, “But that collar locked me off from all of my Wind Spirit powers.”

He summoned his sword and then let it vanish again, as if just to test that he was able to do it.

“Shadow,” Blaze said, “Go tell Vanilla to bring in the armies.”

Shadow vanished into thin air.

“You look a little worse for wear, dude,” Knuckles observed, standing beside Sonic and placing a supportive hand upon his younger brother’s back, “You okay?”

“I’m fine,” Sonic said, wrapping an arm over Knuckles’ shoulder and leaning against him just slightly. “Eggman’s been having his fun, I’ll say that much.”

“He was torturing you,” Knuckles said, partly as a question and partly as an observation.

“It’s fine,” Sonic insisted stubbornly, “I’m fine.”

“He’s going to kill you,” Amy said, “He has the means to destroy the Wind Spirit’s incarnation cycle for good. That’s his plan; to destroy you and subsequent lives, so he can take over.”

“We won’t let that happen,” Sonic said with a cocky smile. “So what’s the plan?”

“Shadow and Vanilla will lead all four armies into the Empire. We’ll lash out, hitting Robotnik hard and fast, and hopefully by nightfall we’ll be free of his menace.”

“Or sunrise tomorrow,” Blaze said. 

“And us?”

“Rouge is going to lead us to the control room of the factory next. If we can debilitate his machinery, we can prevent him from producing any more badniks.”

Sonic nodded. “Let’s get going, then. We’re on a time limit, now that I’m out.”

Amy paused, unsure of what he meant, but quickly realized it was because Robotnik would certainly discover his absence soon. 

As soon as the group reentered the vent system, Amy could feel Sonic’s anxiety practically radiating off of him.

“You okay?” She whispered as they crawled, making their way towards the vertical shaft to get back to the first floor, where the control room lay.

“I don’t do tight spaces,” He whispered back, and left it at that.

“We’ll be out soon.”

He hummed in response as Blaze took the ascent up towards the first floor, Rouge squeezing her way to the back of the line to ensure everyone made it up safely. Knuckles followed suit, then Amy. Sonic, anxious and not in peak condition, struggled with the climb. About halfway up he froze, eyes wide with fear as he clung to the metal walls. He looked up, to where Amy waited, gazing down at him. He looked down, to where Rouge was waiting with a frown on her face. Sonic dug his claws into the metal and whined softly, not daring move any further.

Rouge ended up needing to fly him the rest of the way up.

Amy made a mental note: hydrophobia _and_ claustrophobia. Poor guy.

As soon as they reached the control room, Sonic tumbled out of the vent, hitting the floor unceremoniously with a thud, taking a deep, gasping breath.

“I don’t care what happens next,” he growled, “But I am _not_ going back in there.”

Amy helped him up to his feet, held his shaking hand.

“Now what?” Amy asked, glancing around at all this strange machinery she had no idea how to operate.

Knuckles cracked his namesakes with a grin. “We smash it.”

“The machinery in this room controls the functions of all other machines in the factory,” Blaze said. She drew her blade. “Should this machinery get damaged, the entire factory will be unable to function.”

Amy raised her hammer and brought it down on a nearby control panel; once, twice, three times, until it was a pile of mangled metal. Meanwhile, Knuckles, Blaze, and Sonic all used their swords to slash wires, cut gashes into machines. 

A flashing red light illuminated the room in quick increments, an alarm blaring through the hallways.

“Time’s up,” Sonic said with a grin, driving his sword down into a board illuminated with colorful little lights. The lights on the board went dark. “Eggy’s onto us.”

“Let’s hope Vanilla and Shadow are nearby,” Blaze prayed. “O divine Wind Spirit, protect us.”

“Meh, I’ll do my best,” Sonic joked, and Blaze laughed. Amy rolled her eyes.

Rouge kicked the control room door open, revealing the hallway lined with tile floors and pristine white walls. The group rushed out, immediately facing a horde of badniks heading their way.

“Let’s do this,” Blaze growled, striking flint against her blade, igniting the weapon in flames.


End file.
